Stranger to Myself
by vinkunwildflowerqueen
Summary: When the wife of the Governor of Munchkinland gives birth to a green-skinned child, they abandon her at an orphanage in the Emerald City to hide their shame. 20 years later, what happens when she goes looking for answers? AU, Shiz-era, musicalverse. Fiyeraba.
1. Chapter 1

**Stranger to Myself**

**By Vinkunwildflowerqueen**

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. Hi! I'm very excited to be posting this, because I had the idea for this around the same time I planned _Out of the Blue- _Last August. So it's finally written! **

**This is different in many ways from what I've written before, and I won't lie- writing parts of it was hard. It was my first time writing several characters, and the storyline meant I had to deal with a bunch of issues that I wasn't quite sure how to write them, whilst keeping them to true to Elphaba. **

**But I hope you enjoy it, and I'm looking forward to hearing from all of you. **

**One**

It was a stormy spring night in Munckinland when Omega, the local midwife, was summoned to the Governor's household to deliver his wife's first child.

When she entered the house, her assistant behind her; she was met by the Governor, Frexspar Thropp, who was quite frantic.

"Melena's in a lot of pain."

"That's perfectly normal," Omega assured him and led the way upstairs, to where they could hear the screaming.

Omega bustled into the room, and quickly checked Melena's progress. The labour had progressed quickly, she could see the baby's head.

"It's coming!" she gasped.

"Now?" Frex gaped, following her into the room.

"The baby's coming," she confirmed, and Frex happened to see.

His face paled and his head swam. "And how!" he said faintly, and moved up by Melena's head to clutch her hand.

Melena was panting as she looked up at Omega.

"I- thought you said that- that first babies take a while to come," she gasped and Omega smiled.

"Not always. Evidently, your little one wants to meet you. Are you ready to push?"

Melena nodded, sharing an excited and apprehensive look with Frex.

"On the next contraction, push. Got it?"

Melena nodded again and grimaced. "I- I can feel it coming."

"Then push!" Omega said firmly and Melena obeyed.

Omega watched carefully and expertly, watching the dim top of the baby's head she could see slowly move forward.

"I see a nose!" she called out, and Frex bravely took a step forward himself to see his child be born.

Omega, from the corner of her eye, saw a look of awe and wonder spread over the Governor's face as she had seen on the face of many a father-to-be.

"I see a curl!" he told Melena excitedly. "It's a healthy, lovely, perfect little-"

The baby slid out of Melena and into the light of the room, and Frex stopped mid-sentence, both he and Omega uttering involuntary gasps of shock.

"Sweet Oz!" Frex exclaimed

Melena looked up, panic stricken. "What is it?" she asked frantically. "What's wrong?"

Her first thought was that something was wrong with the baby. It was alright, wasn't it? She could hear no crying, she couldn't even see the baby as it lay on the bed between her legs on the bed.

A cold chill crept through Melena. The baby… was it even alive? She looked between Frex and Omega, hoping for reassurance.

Frex left his wife's side to consult with Omega, not even bothering to answer his wife's terrified question.

Omega was completely flummoxed, she'd never seen anything like this before in all the babies she'd delivered.

"How can this be?" she was muttering to herself.

Frex's shock was beginning to wear off, and he was horrified.

"What does this mean?" he demanded.

"It's… _atrocious!" _she gasped, lost for words.

That seemed to be an understatement in Frex's mind. "It's _obscene!" _Frex spat back at her.

Melena was still looking between the Antelope midwife and her husband wordlessly, wondering what could be wrong with the baby.

Frex saw the worry in her eyes, but did not comfort her. Instead he told her bluntly,

"Like a froggy, ferny, _cabbage, _the baby is unnaturally _green!"_

Melena frowned, not understanding. The baby was green? What did that mean? Was it alive?

Silently, Omega held up the baby for her to see. Sure enough, the baby's skin was a sickly green colour.

Melena was breathless in shock, almost hyperventilating. She couldn't speak, she was so horrified. She was almost completely numb. How could the baby be _green? _But she was alive, and small, and perfect. But green. And as Melena stared at her daughter, the baby raised her tiny head and looked right at her.

Omega knew better than to hand a new born baby to Melena when she was in such a state, even if the baby was… well, the way it was.

Instead, she offered it up to Frex.

He only glanced at the baby, then turned his face away in disgust. "Ugh, take it away."

Omega hesitated, not sure what he meant. "Take it _away!" _he spat, and strode out of the room.

Leaving her assistant to clean up Melena and the baby still in her arms, Omega followed after the Governor.

"Sir, what exactly do you-"

"Take it away. Get it out of this house!" the Governor said angrily. "Drown it for all I care!"

Omega was flabbergasted. "But… Mrs Thropp-"

"Will be better off without such a child," Frex replied coldly. "Do what you will with it, Omega. I want nothing to do with this… _thing._"

Omega looked down at the baby in her arms. It wasn't crying, it just lay there peacefully. As far as she could see it was in perfect health- apart from the fact it was green all over. It was breathing on its own; was a good size… Omega knew she'd never be able to bring herself to do as Frex had suggested and drown a perfectly healthy, albeit abnormal child.

"It's a girl," she said quietly.

"I do not care," Frex retorted.

"Sir, I cannot kill a healthy, living child. Abnormal though she is," Omega said firmly.

Frex glowered at her. "I won't have this… I want it gone. I will not have it be known that Melena gave birth to such a…"

He couldn't even say the word 'baby'.

"I can take it to an orphanage, in the Emerald City," Omega offered. "So no-one will ever associate her with your child."

"Fine," Frex agreed. He didn't care. He just wanted it gone.

If word got out about this… monstrosity, they'd be humiliated.

Omega hesitated. "She'll need a bottle or such. She'll require a feed before I leave her."

She knew she had formula, and blankets in her supplies, but she had no bottles.

Frex sighed heavily, as though the matter of finding a bottle was too much hassle for him, on top of his first child being born green.

"I will take care of it."

"And Mrs Thropp? The people?"

"Melena will see reason," Frex said icily. "As for the people, I'll make the announcement in the morning that the child was born dead. Melena and I are in grieving and would appreciate privacy."

Omega nodded. "Very good, sir. The bottle?"

Frex disappeared for a few moments and came back eventually with a small green bottle.

"I found this amongst Melena's things. It will suffice, I trust?"

"Yes. Thank you sir."

"Just get that thing gone. I must talk with Melena. Goodnight Omega."

"Goodnight, Governor. My sympathies to you and your wife."

Omega left, with the child in her arms, and Frex returned to the bedroom. Omega's assistant bowed courteously to him and left the room silently. She knew without having to be told not to mention what had happened here tonight to anyone.

Melena was struggling to sit up in bed. She was pale and weak, but the worry in her eyes was clearly evident.

"Frexspar! Where is the baby?" she asked.

Frex sighed and sat down on the bed next to his wife's side. "Gone."

"Gone?" Melena repeated. "Gone where? Is it a boy or a girl?" she asked eagerly.

"A girl," Frex replied shortly.

Melena's face lit up. "A girl! I always wanted a daughter… what do you think of the name Nessarose? I think it's quite beautiful."

"Melena, the baby is not coming back," Frex interrupted. "Omega has taken her away."

As it sunk in, horror appeared over Melena's face. "You- you gave away our daughter? Frex, how could you do such a thing?"

Frex gripped her by the shoulders. "Melena, the child was _green. _If news got out, we'd be a laughing-stock through all of Munchkinland! We can't have such a thing besmirching our family reputation."

"That _thing _is our daughter!" Melena snapped at him. "How dare you? She grew inside me, we felt her move to our voices! I sang a lullaby to her every night my entire pregnancy! And you just throw her away?"

"It was for the best, Melena," Frex replied firmly.

"And how do you intend to explain this to the people?" Melena demanded.

"I will send out news in the morning that the child was born dead. People won't ask questions."

Melena began to sob quietly. "I didn't even get to hold her," she cried. "I only saw her once… and you gave her away. You gave her away… my baby…"

Frex felt a touch of sympathy, and tried to put his hand on her shoulder, but she shrugged him off, crying harder.

After a moment, Frex stood up and left the room. Melena would see in time, once the shock was gone and her body began to heal physically.

She would see they were better off this way. And in time, they would have other children. _Proper _children, who would not be born green and could make him proud, eventually taking over as Governor.

Yes, Frex nodded to himself as he went into his office. This was for the best.

He didn't give another thought to his green-skinned daughter sitting beside Omega in a carriage bound for the Emerald City, drinking hastily made formula out of a small, green glass bottle.

**AN. Yep, when I saw the show in Perth last year I was thinking about the scene of Elphaba's birth and when Frex said "take it away!" I wondered… what if she actually was taken away? **

**And thus, the story was born! LOL**

**Also, because I'm LOVING this book-cover thing has done, if anyone wants to help make a cover for this fic, I shall love you forever. I know what I want, but I suck at doing this kind of thing.**


	2. Chapter 2

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. I just wanted to explain why I listed this story under "Elphaba" when it says "Fiyeraba" in the summary- this story definitely has Fiyeraba in it, but as Elphaba and Fiyero's relationship is not the main focus of the story, I felt it more appropriate just to list it under "Elphaba". **

**And a HUGE thank you to 3Mindy3 who designed the truly awesome cover for this story!**

**And a mention to Julia, because I laughed a lot when you were so surprised I'd finished this story... even though I did tweet about it. LOL**

**Two**

**TWENTY YEARS LATER**

Elphaba Rozek looked around her room, making sure she hadn't forgotten to pack anything. Everything she owned fit into one small suitcase and a few cardboard boxes, which were mostly filled with books.

There was a gentle knock on the door, and Elphaba turned to see the middle-aged woman who ran the orphanage, Kistine smiling at her warmly.

"Are you ready, Elphaba?"

The green girl nodded, and straightened the glasses on her nose. "I'm ready."

Kistine sighed, coming into the room to look at Elphaba. "So many times I imagined this moment," she said fondly. "Except when I pictured it, I always rather hoped I'd be sending you to your new family."

Elphaba smiled wryly. "You probably also imagined it would be sooner than twenty years, if that was the case," she teased gently.

Kistine had been the closest thing Elphaba had ever known to a mother. It had been she who had christened Elphaba as such, and had shown her pretty much the only affection she'd ever known.

"The carriage is downstairs waiting for you."

Elphaba nodded, picked up her suitcase and grabbed a box.

Kistine grabbed the other box, and followed the girl downstairs. The children they passed waved to her, calling goodbye and wishing her luck.

"Now," Kistine said, turning to Elphaba as the driver was putting the luggage into the carriage. "Work hard, eat well, and make plenty of friends."

"Because I've always had plenty of friends," Elphaba said sarcastically, but embraced the older woman tightly.

"Thank you, Kistine. For everything."

"And keep in touch," Kistine continued, shooing Elphaba away.

"I will," Elphaba promised.

She climbed in to the carriage and waved as it drove away. Elphaba sighed to herself as the familiar streets and signs flashed by.

She could hardly believe it, _finally_, she was on her way to Shiz University. It had been Elphaba's dream to go there for years, but being an orphan, tuition was rather difficult.

Elphaba had worked full time as a waitress since she was sixteen, the past four years, to be able to save up enough money. When she had reached eighteen, and was legally an adult, Kistine had let Elphaba continue living at the orphanage, so she could continue saving money.

She had refused to take board, so instead, Elphaba had repaid her by cooking, cleaning and helping out with the younger children at the orphanage. Elphaba had expected it would still be a while before she was able to actually apply to Shiz, she wanted to have at least two years tuition saved before she went.

But then luck seemed to be in her favour. In the spring, she had applied for a scholarship for Shiz, and they had granted it to her. It was only a partial scholarship, they would pay for her basic tuition fees, but Elphaba would still need to buy her own books and pay the student fee.

It also didn't cover board, so Elphaba had spent the latter part of the summer scouring the papers until she found an apartment in Shiz that she could afford. Kistine had worried that the low price meant it was likely to be a dump, but Elphaba didn't care. It was cheap, partly furnished and as long as it had some semblance of a kitchen and bathroom, that was all she really needed.

It was a place to live, and she could afford basic rent, utilities and groceries on the small budget she'd worked out. It would be tight, and she'd have to find a job pretty quickly because her savings wouldn't last long, but she would be at Shiz and that was all Elphaba really cared about.

Elphaba couldn't wait to get there and start studying. She was planning to do a double degree of law and politics. Elphaba had her life all planned out, she prided herself on her ambition and her organisation.

She suspected it was because being an orphan, never knowing if the next couple who walked in the door would pick you to adopt; and knowing with every year it was less and less likely… especially when you were like Elphaba.

Elphaba's plan was simple. She wanted to go to Shiz (check); study law and politics (check); and after graduation, she was going to work for her hero- the Wonderful Wizard of Oz.

Elphaba _loved _hearing the story of how the Wizard had come to Oz in his hot air balloon, and all the Wonderful things he had done for the people of Oz since. When she had been ten, a musical had opened in the theatre district, a musical called _Wizomania, _all about the Wizards' arrival. The company had given free seats to the orphans at the orphanage, and Elphaba had been completely drawn into it.

She had only seen it once since- being an orphan didn't exactly give you a lot of opportunity to see theatre. But Kistine had bought tickets for Elphaba's eighteenth birthday, and it had been just as magical then as eight years before; maybe even more so given this time Elphaba had known more about the history and had understood more of the background context.

It was a few hours journey between the Emerald City and Shiz, and Elphaba settled in for the journey. She opened her shoulder bag, looking for the book she was halfway through reading and had placed in the bag that morning.

However, when her fingers brushed glass, she stopped. She pulled out the small green glass bottle, that was literally all she had from her birth parents. She knew nothing about them, which province they were from; whether they too, were green; what they looked like or why they had given her up.

Kistine had told her that she had been left with the bottle on the orphanage doorstep very early one morning in April. There had been no note, just the bottle which had had formula in it, and some form of a blanket she had been wrapped in. Kistine used to tell her the story, of how she had brought her inside, given her another bottle and called a doctor.

The doctor had deemed she was perfectly healthy, and only a few hours old at most; but he could find no reason why she was green. So Kistine had named her Elphaba Rozek- Elphaba, which meant "magical" and Rozek, which she had read in a book one day.

"Why did you pick _Elphaba?_" she had always asked.

Kistine had always smiled in return. "From the moment I first saw you, being born the special way you were, you couldn't be anything else but magical."

As Elphaba got older, Kistine's words seemed to be accurate. She didn't realise until she was about five and they began to occur in waking hours, that what Elphaba had always assumed were just very vivid dreams, were actually more than that.

The older she got, the more vivid they became and the stronger they became. Sometimes they were visions, sometimes they were merely feelings… most often was the melody of a song which seemed to be in her head constantly. She had never heard it before, but she used to walk around humming it constantly.

One day when she was eight, one of the kids in the orphanage had asked Elphaba what it was and how she knew it, and Elphaba couldn't answer. Kistine had consulted an old woman, Yackle who had experience with magic and things like that.

Yackle had told them that what Elphaba was experiencing could either be visions of the future, or visions of her past, from before she was left at the orphanage. In other words, some kind of signs or messages about her birth parents.

Kistine dismissed that as nonsense, but it made sense to Elphaba. The orphanage had an old, rarely in tune piano that someone had donated for the children to play on. It had taken a few months, but Elphaba had taught herself at age eight to read music and play the piano. When she was eleven, she wrote down the melody that was always dancing around in her head; but it wasn't until she was thirteen that the words came along with it.

Elphaba suspected her "powers" were another reason no family had chosen to adopt her. She was strange enough being green, let alone having visions- whether they were of the past or the future. She always wrote them down, but she couldn't give meaning to any of them.

"We're here, Miss," the driver said, opening the door a few hours later and Elphaba looked up from her book in surprise.

"Oh. Thank you," she said and climbed of the carriage, looking up at her new home.

Well, it was old and didn't look like much, but Elphaba was never one to go off appearances. You couldn't, when you were green. She already had the key, so she picked up her suitcase and left the driver to follow with the few boxes as she headed inside.

She was met with a long, steep flight of stairs. Slowly, she headed up and came to a door, which opened to reveal the inside of her home. It was mostly a large open room with a stove and such that made Elphaba guess _that _area was to be the kitchen.

There was a small bathroom off to one side, in a separate room thankfully, which had a toilet, sink and a small tin bathtub. There were only two windows, one at each end of the room, and the floors were bare and wooden. "Partly furnished" apparently meant a thin mattress which sat on the floor; a small empty wooden closet; and a small dining table with mismatched dining chairs.

Elphaba immediately set down her suitcase and began to make a list of what she'd need to buy immediately, and what could wait until she had a job and was working. Cleaning supplies, obviously. She had clean blankets so that was fine, and she'd need a lamp so she could work at night. Other than that, it was mostly small kitchen things so she would be able to cook for herself, and eat.

The driver finished carrying in her boxes, tipped his hat and left, wishing her a good day. For a moment, Elphaba basked in the knowledge she was on her own, in her own house; but then she decided to get to work.

**AN. When I started writing this, the orphanage lady was going to be mean, but then she just literally appeared on the page and she was nice- so I went with it.**

**One of the big things with this story was how would Elphaba be different if this happened? Raised in an orphanage, but with someone kind of like a mother figure in her life; and growing up in the Emerald City where we know from the show that no one points or stares at her skin.**

**So, I hope I've done OK with writing it! **


	3. Chapter 3

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. And to Wicked Is My Life- interesting theory, but Elphaba's song is not Defying Gravity. I was intrigued by that idea, though! **

**Three**

Elphaba had made sure to arrive in Shiz a month before the semester began, hoping that would give her enough time to find a job and get some work in so that she hopefully wouldn't have to touch her savings for books and could instead save that precious money for her bills.

It was two days after she'd moved in that she set out early one morning, a stack of resumes and references in her bag. It had taken her that long to thoroughly scrub the entire apartment, or as she had already taken to calling it, the "crapartment"- said with affection, of course.

Elphaba walked the short distance into town and entered the first restaurant she saw.

"Excuse me, could I see the manager please?" she asked the girl at the counter.

The girl looked startled. "Uh, sure. Mrs Derona? Someone to see you!" she called out towards the kitchens.

A moment later, a tall, thin business-like woman came into view. When she saw Elphaba, she stopped and stared abruptly.

"Can I help you?" she asked stiffly.

Elphaba was slightly taken aback by her cold tone. "Hello, I was wondering if you had any part-time jobs open at the moment or in the near future?"

The woman stared at her for a moment. "No, we're not hiring."

Elphaba nodded. "Ok. Could I leave you with a copy of my resume in case any jobs open up?"

The woman raised an eyebrow. "No, I don't think so. You're not usual the kind of girl we hire here. Please leave immediately."

Elphaba was stunned. "What does _that _mean?" she demanded sharply.

The woman looked at her dismissively, and Elphaba flushed slightly.

"My dear, you're green. You'll put my customers off their food. Now, kindly leave before I call the authorities."

Elphaba was completely stunned. "Call the authorities? On what grounds?" she demanded. "I haven't done anything wrong!"

The woman's face remained hard and cold. "Leave. Now. I won't tell you again, girl."

Elphaba was furious, and embarrassed. She wanted to argue, but she didn't doubt that the woman actually would call the authorities. Trembling slightly, she left.

When she got outside, she actually had to stop and lean against the wall. The woman's reaction had been completely unexpected.

Although even in the Emerald City, her skin was considered an abnormality, she'd never been subjected to such a cold and cruel treatment. Here, she noticed fully for the first time, everyone stared at her as though… there was something seriously wrong with her.

As Elphaba stood there, a woman came down the street, leading a small child by the hand, who couldn't be more than four. When the child noticed Elphaba, the little boy tugged at his mother's skirt and pointed at Elphaba. When his mother looked up to see what he was pointing to and saw Elphaba, she stopped dead in her tracks, before lifting the boy onto her hip and crossing to the other side of the road.

Elphaba felt as though she'd been slapped. Yes, she had green skin. She wasn't sure why, and she knew it was abnormal and disgustified; but was she really that despicable that she should be avoided as though it were contagious?

Elphaba tried to keep hope that not all people in Shiz would be this way; there were just some people who were more small-minded than others. But the next three places she went to looking for work all had the same reaction as the first woman.

The fifth place insisted they weren't hiring, despite the "Help Wanted" sign Elphaba had clearly seen in the window, and the sixth place refused to even let her in the door. Restaurants, bookstores, dress salons… they were all the same.

Dejected, and more than a little worried about finding work now and what she would do for money, Elphaba kept walking through the town, looking for _anyone_ that might hire her. By the second day, she'd exhausted all possibilities in the main roads and was reduced to the many side streets of the town, getting further and further away from the campus. That afternoon, she was walking down a little side road, when she paused uncertainly outside an old, beautiful dark building. It seemed empty, but on a whim and feeling desperate, Elphaba pushed open the door and entered. It was dimly lit but the architecture and design was just as beautiful on the inside as the outside.

There were a few people inside, but it was mostly empty and Elphaba hesitated in the foyer. It didn't look like this place did enough business to hire her, even if she wasn't apparently a freak. She turned to leave, just about to give up and try again tomorrow, when she accidentally knocked over a plant as she turned to leave, and it fell, smashing to the ground.

"Crap!" she hissed, hastily dropping to the ground to pick up the large pot… or what remained of it. Soil and bits of pottery littered the ground.

"Hello?"

Elphaba jumped up in alarm and turned to face the voice that had spoken. A man rounded the counter and stopped when he saw Elphaba standing there. His eyes flickered between her, the plant and the mess on the ground.

"I'm so sorry," she apologised immediately. "I was just leaving and… it was an accident, I promise. If you want me to pay for the pot, I can," she offered, although internally she was balking at having to touch her limited funds more than she already had.

"Did you want to eat here?" the man asked cautiously, stepping forward.

"No, a-although I'm sure the food's lovely," she stammered quickly. "I- I just came in… never mind. I'm sorry; I didn't mean to make a mess."

The man continued to stare at her, and Elphaba cleared her throat uncomfortably. "I came to see if you had any part-time jobs for offer, but… I'm sorry. I'll just go."

Another voice chimed in before she could leave. "You're looking for a job?"

Elphaba looked behind the man and saw a woman come out from the office, she supposed it was.

"I- well, yes," she said faintly.

The woman came to a still as she really saw Elphaba for the first time. She said nothing and did nothing, she merely just looked at Elphaba silently.

Elphaba did nothing in return, waiting for the inevitable firm request to leave and not come back.

"Do you have any experience?" the woman asked abruptly.

Elphaba was stunned, that was the last thing she had expected to hear. She was so caught off guard, the speech she'd mentally prepared earlier to give to prospective employers was completely forgotten.

"I- I… I have a resume. Oh, and ref-references," she stammered hastily, digging through her bag to find the pieces of papers, which she handed to the woman with a shaky hand.

The woman read them and then handed them to the man, her husband, Elphaba presumed.

"You're going to Shiz?"

"Y-yes, ma'am, I am," Elphaba replied politely, her heart in her throat.

"Excuse us for a moment," the man spoke for the first time in a while.

Elphaba nodded wordlessly in agreement as they both retreated to the office. Despite how quiet and empty the restaurant was, she couldn't hear even a murmur of voices from the office, so there was nothing she could do except stand there awkwardly and wait for them to return.

It couldn't have been more than a few minutes, but it felt like hours to Elphaba as she stood there, looking at the broken pot and plant still lying on the floor at her feet. No one came in, but some of the lone diners in the room glanced over at her a few times in curiosity.

Finally, the couple returned.

"Please, have a seat," the man said brusquely, gesturing towards an empty table in the restaurant where the woman was already sitting down and making herself comfortable.

With a final guilty flicker towards the mess on the ground, Elphaba followed him and sat opposite them.

"So… Miss Elphaba Rozek…"

"Yes," Elphaba replied hesitantly, unsure if it were a question or not.

The woman sighed and looked directly at Elphaba. "My name is Idonea, and this is my husband Alun. You may call us Idonea and Alun. We do quite a bit of business when school is in session, many of the staff and students like to come here for meals on weeknights and weekends. We also own the _OzDust Ballroom, _perhaps you've seen it?"

Elphaba nodded. She had, but hadn't bothered going inside and asking for a job. It had seemed too big for her, but it had been on her "last resort" list of options which was her last hope after the side streets.

"If needed, you may be required to work there in addition to here on Friday nights and weekends," Alun spoke up. "Is that a problem?"

"No, sir," Elphaba answered quickly. She'd do almost anything for a job, she wasn't too picky.

"Do you know your schedule yet for classes?" he asked.

Elphaba nodded. "Yes, er… all day Monday and Wednesday, Tuesday afternoons and Friday mornings. I don't have any classes on Thursdays."

She paused briefly, than blurted out, "I'm sorry- does this mean you're giving me a job?"

Alun glanced at his wife before answering. "We're giving you a trial period. For a month. And if things go well, we'll discuss the subject further then."

Elphaba understood what he wasn't saying, that the trial was not just for her, but to see how the customers and hence their business reacted to the employment of a strange green-skinned girl.

But a trial was a trial, she told herself. It was more than she'd gotten so far and she couldn't afford to be picky.

"Thank you," she said sincerely.

"We'll expect you here at eight am on Saturday morning," Idonea said and Elphaba nodded in understanding.

"You'll need to wear your hair up and dress in something appropriate. Anything black is fine."

Elphaba nodded again, thinking she'd have to touch her savings again to buy one or two work-appropriate dresses. The black wasn't an issue, but she'd need something presentable.

But she forced her mind back to the conversation as she realised Idonea was still talking. "We'll give you an apron when you arrive. And wear sensible shoes. That's all."

There was something in the woman's tone that told Elphaba it was time to go, and she half-rose awkwardly.

"I'll clean up the mess I made before I go," she said, gesturing towards the broken pot.

"Never mind that," Idonea smiled faintly. "Goodbye, Miss Elphaba."

Elphaba thought about offering her hand to shake, but wasn't sure how they'd respond, so didn't.

"Goodbye. And thank you," she said and hurriedly left the building.

She was half-way down the street before she turned to look at the building. There was a sign above the doorway that Elphaba hadn't noticed before- _Identity, _the name of the place she supposed.

It was fitting, she mused to herself as she made her way back to the "crapartment", that it would be the name of the place that gave her a job. Identity was something that Elphaba had struggled with her whole life, not just as an orphan, but as "the green girl." It made you who you were. She could tell why Idonea and Alun had chosen that name- it was such a beautiful old building, it did almost have its own identity.

She couldn't have imagined that it would play such a role in shaping her own identity however.


	4. Chapter 4

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**Four**

Idonea and Alun had been right, the closer they came to the beginning of the Shiz semester, the busier they got, with both staff and students- those returning and those arriving for the first time, who would stumble upon _Identity _whilst exploring the town before school started.

It had been three weeks, and although the month and therefore Elphaba's trial wasn't over yet, she was reasonably confident that she wouldn't be back on the streets looking for work whilst juggling schoolwork when the month was over. It didn't pay much, but it was just manageable for Elphaba's budget. And it was a job.

They had all seemed wary of one another at first- Alun and Idonea as they tried to figure out just who was this green girl they had hired off the street; and Elphaba, as she kept waiting for the other shoe to drop and the inevitable "it's not working out." The big concern had been how would the customers react, but it hadn't been the disaster Elphaba had been imagining.

She'd had a few customers walk out or refuse to be waited on by her, and many more inquire tentatively if she had any contact with the food before ordering- although, what they imagined she'd do to the food, Elphaba had no idea. But for the most part, people would stare and gape at her when she arrived to seat people or take their orders, and then proceed to ignore her except when they needed something. They kept their distance, but few had been outwardly rude or cruel.

Often as she went about her shifts, Elphaba would look around at the people eating there and wonder if any of them would be her teachers, or her classmates. The semester would begin the next week, and Elphaba was eager to get into studying.

There were two other girls who worked at _Identity. _Ankita was a third year law student, who had been working at _Identity _for two years now. She was cordial to Elphaba, but was as wary of the strange green girl as everyone else was. Nalini, Idonea had told Elphaba when she'd introduced them, was going into her second year at Shiz, majoring in art. Nalini only worked at the restaurant occasionally, preferring to take as much work at the _OzDust Ballroom _as possible. That suited Elphaba fine. Nalini never spoke to Elphaba unless absolutely necessary and often stared at Elphaba as though she were something unpleasant on the bottom of her shoe.

There was also Kaylan, the chef and Devdas, who was a graduate student at Shiz doing his masters in philosophy who worked as the bartender, but only in the evenings and lunch on Saturdays. Devdas, or Dev as everyone called him, surprisingly had no real issue with Elphaba. Except for fact he never referred to her by name, but instead a different green object or shade of green. The rest of the time, the girls had to make the drinks themselves, unless Alun or Idonea were on hand and had time to help out.

"Table Five is waiting for you," Nalini coolly informed Elphaba this day, as she swept passed her carrying a tray of drinks.

Elphaba nodded and grabbed her notepad and pencil. "Thanks."

As she made her way to the table, Elphaba studied her latest customers. It was a couple, a boy and a girl. The boy was short, even seated it was obvious from his lack of stature that he was a Munchkin, although he seemed taller than any Munchkin Elphaba had ever seen- as few as that may be. The girl with him was young and very pretty, but what Elphaba couldn't help but notice was that she was seated in a wheelchair.

And as she always did, Elphaba braced herself before closing the final distance between herself and the table, wondering how they'd react when they saw her.

"Hello, my name is Elphaba and I'll be your waitress today," she announced herself, drawing their attention.

The girl's eyes widened when she saw Elphaba and she said nothing. The Munchkin boy on the other hand, uttered a small gasp and shrunk down in his seat, raising his menu to act as a shield between Elphaba and himself. Elphaba was tempted to point out a menu would do little to protect him, but simply waited for them to recover and decide how to act.

Finally, the girl's eyes flickered to her companion and she cleared her throat uncomfortably.

"Uh, hello."

"Are you ready to order or would you like to start with drinks?" Elphaba asked.

"Just- just drinks, for now, thank you," the boy squeaked. He avoided looking at Elphaba and peered intently at his menu.

"I'll have an iced tea, please," he continued.

"May I have a juice, please?" the girl asked politely.

Elphaba nodded and wrote the orders down. "I'll be back in a few moments with your drinks and to take your orders," she told them, almost as a warning, she thought to herself and then left to get the drinks.

"Oh, Sweet Oz," breathed Ankita when Elphaba came behind the bar to prepare the drinks.

Elphaba was confusified and saw her staring at table Five.

"What?" she asked, making the requested drinks as she talked.

"Do you know who that is?" Ankita demanded.

"No…" Elphaba replied unsurely. "Who is she?"

"That's Nessarose Thropp," Ankita replied and Elphaba's eyes widened.

"From Munchkinland?"

"The very same," Ankita nodded.

Elphaba found the story of the political system in Munchkinland completely fascinating from a political point of view.

Munchkinland had, until two years prior, been governed by Governor Frexspar Thropp. Two years ago, he had died in a tragic accident and his wife and daughter, on top of grieving over their loss, had been forced out of the Governor's household and forced to fend for themselves. Since then, the province of Munchkinland had been in a state of limbo with no real governing system in place. There was the Mayor of Munchkin City, of course, but they had been trying for the past few months to assemble some sort of council who could work together to govern after a series of ineffective elections to select a new Governor.

"They say she's tragically beautiful," Ankita continued, still subtly staring at the girl.

"Why is she in the wheelchair?" Elphaba asked curiously.

Ankita shrugged. "I don't know. It's all a big secret, I think. Munchkins probably know, but that part of the story never made it to the Glikkus. Only how beautiful she is."

Elphaba nodded, finished the drinks and lifted the tray. She made a murmur of acknowledgement in her throat and headed out to deliver the drinks.

"Here you go. Are you ready to order yet or would you like a few more moments?" she asked as she set down the iced tea before the girl- Nessarose, she supposed.

"No, I think we're ready, aren't we Boq?" Nessarose asked her dining companion, who agreed.

Elphaba didn't think too much about them after that, they hit a busy patch and Elphaba was kept busy until the end of her shift. The next day, Elphaba had the dinner and closing shift, which she didn't mind and actually preferred. It was about dusk when four girls entered, all carrying armloads of shopping bags. Ankita was taking orders, so Elphaba made her way over to seat them.

"Table for four?" she asked.

The blonde girl in front turned from her friend to answer and drew back sharply when she saw Elphaba, and her three friends gaped in horror.

It was an alarming reaction, even for Elphaba, and she raised an eyebrow fractionally. The five of them stood there in silence for a few moments, waiting for someone to make the first move.

The four girls exchanged looks, and then finally the blonde girl cleared her throat and raised her head, tossing her blonde curls haughtily.

"Yes. One near a window, I need the natural light," she commanded.

Elphaba tightened her lips but said nothing. "This way," she replied shortly, then grabbed four menus and walked away, not looking back to see if they were following or not.

She led them to a table- with the appropriate amount of natural light that had been specifically requested, and waited until they sat down.

"Would you like to order now or just start with drinks?"

The blonde girl took the menu gingerly from Elphaba, opened it and perused it slowly. Elphaba gritted her teeth in annoyance, sure she was doing it on purpose, for what reason she couldn't tell, but she waited patiently.

Finally, she spoke.

"What can I get here that's low fat, carb-free and with no sugar?"

Elphaba didn't bat an eyelid. "Water," she deadpanned.

One of the girls giggled at that, but from a glare from her friends, hastily changed it into an awkward cough.

The blonde girl flickered her blue eyes from her menu to Elphaba, and regarded her coldly. "I'll have a garden salad, no dressing and iced water. Pfannee?"

The other three girls ordered the same, and Elphaba nodded as she collected the menus. "It won't be long."

"What's their problem?" Elphaba muttered under her breath as she walked away. "Bitch."

It didn't end there. One of the girls called Elphaba over within a minute of delivering the salads to the tables, to complain and request that the salad be removed, the tomato removed and the salad returned. The third girl requested a fresh glass of water when the ice in her water melted, complaining the melted ice made her water "too watery"; and then they left without leaving a tip or even a "Thank you."

Elphaba was hopeful that she'd never see those girls again. She thought they were rude and conceited and she hadn't appreciated the way they had clearly looked down on her, when she was just doing her job. It was obvious to Elphaba that they were clearly from wealthy families and had never had to work a day in their lives and thought themselves better than everyone else because of it.

If they were Shiz students- and she suspected they were from their age, Elphaba was crossing fingers that they weren't freshman like she was or that they wouldn't have any classes together. Shiz was a large school and campus, surely it wouldn't be difficult to avoid people if necessary.

So, she was surprised and less than pleased when they showed up for lunch a few days later, the Saturday before the semester would begin. Elphaba supressed a moan as she reluctantly headed over to seat them, but when the blonde girl saw Elphaba approaching, she quickly summoned Idonea, who was there to work on the rosters for the next week and walking past.

"Excuse me, we'd like to be seated please," she called out briskly.

Idonea stopped. She looked over her shoulder and saw Elphaba on her way and turned back to the girls.

"Someone will be with you in a moment, ladies."

"No, we'd like to be seated immediately, please," the blonde girl said sharply.

Idonea raised an eyebrow. "It will just be a moment."

The blonde girl drew herself up to her full height and tossed her curls. "I am Galinda Upland. Of the Upper Uplands. And I would like to be seated _immediately_."

Evidently the name meant something, because Idonea grabbed four menus and requested the girls follow her to a table.

"Silly rich girls," Idonea muttered to Elphaba, meeting her by the bar after seating the girls.

"Do you know her?" Elphaba asked.

Idonea shook her head. "I know of her family. The Uplands have this huge estate up in Gilikin. Big, wealthy family. They're spoilt and insist on getting their own way on everything, but they're great customers and have a lot of influence in society. If the Upland girl tells people this is the best place to go, people will come. Give her anything she wants," she told Elphaba sternly.

Elphaba nodded obediently, but inside she was groaning.

"Are you ready to order?" she asked dully, standing by their table.

The blonde girl, the infamous Galinda, Elphaba assumed, looked up from her menu and looked Elphaba up and down, taking in her simple black dress.

"No, not you. Get someone else," she commanded.

Elphaba was taken aback. "Excuse me?"

"We'd like another waitress, please. Now."

Elphaba was tempted to demand an explanation, but she was mindful of Idonea's command. "It'll just be a moment," she replied sharply and turned to leave.

"Galinda, was that necessary?" one of the girls asked in a low voice.

Galinda didn't bother to keep her voice down. "Milla, we can't be seen associating with the Artichoke girl. Even just as a waitress. What would people say?"

Elphaba felt a lump in her throat as she found Idonea in the office.

"Idonea? Those girls at table nine are requesting another waitress."

Idonea looked up at Elphaba, who waited tensely. Surely this reflected bad on Idonea and Alun and the business. If people refused to be served by her, Elphaba would lose her job.

But Idonea only stared at her for another moment, then returned to the roster she was working on.

"Get Dev to take their orders and you can cover the bar for a minute," she said simply.

Elphaba blinked in surprise. "O-Ok," she agreed and hurried to do so.

Standing at the bar, watching the four girls bat their eyelashes and giggle and flirt with Dev as he took their orders, Elphaba felt a surge of loathing, mostly directed at the blonde girl.

Who did she think she was to be able to order Elphaba away? Because she didn't want to associate with "the Artichoke girl"? Because she was green, and so apparently below her and her rich, snotty friends?

That settled it. If those girls were to also be at Shiz, Elphaba wanted nothing to do with any of them.

**AN. And yeah, I changed Nessa's family history a little! I debated for a long time whether or not to have her still crippled or not, but in the end I kept it the same. You'll learn exactly what happened with Frex later. **

**And Boq's only a little different. **

**Thank you to Kelly and Holly who gave me their advice on the subject!**

**And yes, there is a line from 'A Cinderella Story' in this chapter.**


	5. Chapter 5

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. Yes, Melena is alive! Who's surprised? I went with this for 2 reasons- 1. I haven't really gotten to write Melena before, and 2. This story works a lot better than if Melena was dead and Frex was alive.**

**Sorry the update's a little late- I went to see Carrie Underwood last night at the Opera House in Sydney (!) and only got home at 1.30 this morning. The show was AMAZING and I wrote about it on my blog if anyone's interested! **

**Five**

When Elphaba woke up on Monday morning, it took her a moment to realise the day. It was Monday.

The beginning of the Shiz semester, the beginning of her college education and the next chapter of her life. And she could hardly wait to begin.

She'd had her bag packed the night before with a few notepads and pens and a small lunch, because she didn't want to waste money by buying food on campus.

Orientation was due to begin at nine am, but it was only a quarter past seven and Elphaba was already impatient to get to campus and start her day. By the time she'd quickly bathed, and dressed in the simple navy blue skirt and blazer that was the closest thing to the Shiz uniform Elphaba could afford, worn with an old pair of brown boots. Her hair was pulled back into a long, tight braid and she'd cleaned her glasses three times.

By that stage, it was a few minutes to eight, and Elphaba decided she couldn't wait in the tiny apartment any longer. She grabbed her bag, checked four times to make sure she had her keys, lunch and enough pens and papers, then left the apartment and headed out of the building.

She felt a bit stupid for arriving at campus an hour early, but she simply couldn't think of anywhere else to go. She'd been looking forward to this moment for so long, and now it was finally here.

It was a ten minute walk from the crapartment to Shiz, and as Elphaba passed through the gates and onto the campus, she looked around in awe. The campus was beautiful, filled with large ivy-covered buildings and big trees over the sprawling grounds. Elphaba was surprised by the wonder and thrill she felt as she took it all in. After all, Shiz was nothing compared to the tall, sparkling buildings of the Emerald City that she had grown up with. But it had its own beauty, and the very vibe of the university campus seemed to be one of prestige and learning.

According to the information she'd been given with her acceptance letter, Orientation was to begin in the auditorium; which happened to be on the other side of campus, according to the map Elphaba found. As she crossed the campus, she became more and more glad she was here so early. Having the extra time meant she could drink in the sights as she passed, instead of having to rush past things on her way so as not to be late.

There was the library, which Elphaba had read was four stories high and held over two million books; the stone courtyard which was centred by the large bronze statue of Valhard Shiz, the founder of the university some three hundred years prior; and the beautiful gardens overlooking Suicide Canal.

Finally she located the auditorium. It was completely empty, but Elphaba couldn't help herself from stepping inside to look around. There were portraits hanging on the walls, both of humans and Animals. Elphaba wasn't sure if they were former Headmasters, graduates or merely important donors to the school.

Feeling rather self-conscious considering she was in an empty room, Elphaba sat down against the wall and pulled a book out of her bag to read. It was a quarter to nine before someone else entered the room, and Elphaba recognised the awkward looking Munchkin boy and the Governor's daughter.

As they entered, the boy pushing the girl's wheelchair before him, they looked over at Elphaba, then glanced away awkwardly, moving to the opposite side of the room. That occurred more and more as the room became more and more crowded. Elphaba gave up on trying to read, it was too disconcerting to focus on her book whilst everyone's eyes bored into her skull.

It was just before nine when the doors opened and Elphaba's stomach dropped and she groaned internally. The snooty blonde girl from _Identity_, whatever her name was, was entering and all around the room people were staring and (in the case of most of the boys and a few of the girls) gawping in adoration, and quite frankly, it made Elphaba want to throw up.

She waltzed into the room, nodding and smiling at everyone at though she was the queen and they were her loyal subjects. She waved flirtatiously at a few good-looking boys who were staring at her appreciatively, and Elphaba rolled her eyes at their reactions. She made her way to the front of the crowd where the three girls she had been eating with were standing. And then she saw Elphaba.

Immediately her smile fell and her mouth twisted into a smirk of disapproval. By now, everyone's attention was firmly fixed on Elphaba and even from the other side of the room, she could hear the mutterings.

"Is she _green?" _

"She's a freak!"

"Who _is _that?"

Elphaba tried to pretend she couldn't hear them, but she was desperately hoping for something, _anything _to break the silence and get the attention off of her.

Thankfully, a few minutes later the doors opened again and a small group of people bustled in, people Elphaba knew immediately were staff members. The woman leading the group was wearing heavy make-up and quite frankly, looked somewhat like a fish.

"Welcome! Welcome, new students!" she cried, attracting everyone's attention.

"I am Madame Morrible, Head Shizstress of Shiz University. And whether you are here to study law, logic or linguification, I know I speak for my fellow faculty members when I say we have nothing but the highest hopes… for some of you."

Elphaba thought that was an odd comment, but couldn't dwell on it as the HeadShizstress moved swiftly on to other matters. There was apparently some outcry when it was revealed that the blonde girl- it was Galinda, Elphaba was reminded as she introduced herself to Madame Morrible (Galinda Upland of the _Upper Uplands, _she'd added, stressing the latter part so all knew it was important); Galinda had apparently managed to snag herself a private suite, much to the dismay of her adoring fans.

Galinda managed to placate them with a vague promise they could all come visit her whenever they wanted, and Elphaba rolled her eyes.

Madame Morrible finished the basic administration details and dismissed them all. Throughout her speech, she somehow had not appeared to notice Elphaba, which was odd- lately, everyone _always _noticed Elphaba.

But Elphaba figured she should introduce herself, given that it had been Madame Morrible who had awarded her the scholarship that allowed her to come to Shiz in the first place. Morrible was still there, talking to a few students, including Galinda Upland and her posse.

"Excuse me? Madame Morrible?"

The Headshizstress turned and subconsciously jumped back, uttering a strangled half- gasp, half- scream when she saw Elphaba's face.

Galinda and her friends fell silent, but took a step back also, as though to put as much space between themselves and Elphaba as possible without being outwardly rude in front of Madame Morrible.

As she recovered from her fright, Madame Morrible placed a hand over her chest.

"Oh! My- my dear…"

Elphaba tried not to show her disconcertion. "Madame Morrible, my name is Elphaba Rozek. I- I wanted to introduce myself."

Madame Morrible raised an eyebrow. "Rozek?"

Elphaba nodded, and watched as Morrible looked through some pages on her clipboard.

"Ah, Miss Rozek. Our scholarship student!"

"Yes, Madame."

"Where is it exactly in the Emerald City that you came from, my dear?"

Elphaba stalled momentarily. People always had the same response when she answered that question.

"The- the Ernest Rusch Children's home, Ma'am."

Elphaba didn't miss how Galinda's eyes lit up at that information, and she immediately turned to whisper to her friends.

"Ah, yes. I recall your application. Well… I'm sure you're very bright."

"Bright? She's phosphorescent!" Elphaba clearly heard Galinda sneer to her friends, giggling and making no effort to keep her voice low.

She flushed and tried to pretend she hadn't heard. Madame Morrible either really hadn't heard, or likewise pretended she hadn't.

"Well, Miss Elphaba, welcome to Shiz. I trust you'll work hard, to prove you are deserving of this scholarship."

"Yes, Madame, I will," Elphaba replied immediately and Morrible nodded.

"Good. Well, if you'll excuse me," she said politely, and turned to address another one of the lingering students.

Elphaba decided while she was still on campus, she may as well go and buy her books for the semester. She had her small savings in her bag, and whilst she was almost loath to part with it, knowing she had so little, she knew she had to get her books at some stage.

She was able to easily spend two hours in the campus bookshop, not just buying the books she needed, but staring longingly at all the books she saw and wished she could buy, if only she had the money.

At first, it was just one or two that she thought could come in handy in relation to one of her subjects, and resolved to remember the titles. But the more she looked, the more she saw. Eventually, she gave up and rooted through her tote bag until she found a pencil and a scrap of paper and she wrote down title after title, to look them up in the Shiz library at a later date.

When she finally left the bookshop, the clerk staring after her in a mixture of fear and curiosity, she looked around aimlessly. She had nothing else to do until her first class the next afternoon.

'_May as well go home, I guess,' _she thought to herself with a little sigh. As she headed towards the campus exit, she walked past several large buildings, which according to the map, were the dorms.

Elphaba looked up at them, expecting to feel perhaps regret that she could not too room in the dorms with her fellow students, instead of a small, rundown apartment on the outskirts of town. After all, this was her first time living by herself. Even at the orphanage, she'd always shared a room with others, at one time with four other girls. But she didn't.

True, at the orphanage the other children had always been mostly polite to her; but there was always a distance between them. Elphaba had always known that she was different from them- and considered strange because of it. Her being green had never been a problem, just a difference.

It was wasn't until she had come here, to Shiz, that people made her feel like she was a freak because of the colour of her skin. Elphaba had, as promised, kept in touch with Kistine since leaving the orphanage, but she'd neglected to tell her about the negative aspects of things, merely focusing on the positive.

Although it felt odd at times to suddenly have all this space and especially- it was the silence that got to her; but she would rather be alone than be forced to room with any of the girls she'd so far met at Shiz.

Elphaba's first class was An Introduction to Ozian Law, and she was really excited. The teacher was a retired barrister, and was supposed to be an amazing teacher, from what she'd heard.

As she made her way to the classroom, she passed by a group of students in the hall. When they saw Elphaba, they immediately turned and whispered to one another.

"She's an _orphan," _she heard one of them hiss.

"I heard they used to lock her in the basement so people wouldn't think all the children were freaks," someone else replied.

"I heard her birth parents left her on the side of the road."

"Yeah, I heard that too. Wasn't it from a moving carriage too? They were trying to kill her."

"It was the doorstep, actually."

The group looked over to see Elphaba standing there, her arms crossed over her chest. They looked uncomfortable that they had been caught talking about her, but not ashamed for actually gossiping about her.

"I was left on the doorstep of the orphanage," Elphaba continued coldly, meeting their gazes. "And I was never locked in the basement. Any other rumours I can clear up for you?"

"It's not a rumour, but I'd like to know how in Oz's name you got here."

Elphaba turned to see Galinda standing behind her, her hand on her hip.

"I walked," she retorted, pretending to misunderstand.

Galinda smirked. "I see. Well, you _are _'bright', aren't you?" she said mockingly, using the words Madame Morrible had used the day before.

Elphaba rolled her eyes and continued on to her classroom. As she walked away, she heard Galinda say loudly,

"I don't know what this place is coming to if they're going to allow this riff-raff in here. Giving an orphan a scholarship- especially when she looks like that. I was told Shiz was a place of prestige."

Elphaba kept walking and pretended her face wasn't flaming with embarrassment.

**AN. SPOILER ALERT: Next chapter, our favourite scandalacious prince arrives!**


	6. Chapter 6

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. Just a few things:**

**1. So everyone likes the crapartment, huh? :) Is this the "Vinkun wildflower" of this story?**

**2. Wicked Is my Life- No, Elphaba is not allergic to water. All my fics are musicalverse-based, so the water thing isn't an issue.**

**3. And yes, Galinda and Elphaba are not roomies! But for all those who asked, yes they WILL eventually become friends. Just not like it happens in the show.**

**This chapter is for Julia (who there is a tiny reference in this chapter just for her :P) and for Kelly and Liana (who I am seeing VERY soon! Hooray!)**

**Six**

Shiz wasn't exactly how Elphaba imagined it. In some ways it was better- she was loving her classes, her teachers and the sense she got from knowing she was working towards her goal. Between classwork and her shifts at _Identity, _she rarely had a moment of spare time and was busier than she had ever been, but she was thriving on it.

But the situation between her and her fellow students had not improved, even a month later. Elphaba loathed all those rich, privileged kids thinking that she wasn't good enough to be there, simply because she was working her way through instead of living off trust funds. And even if it wasn't bad enough she had to see them in class, many of them quite often came to eat at _Identity. _In the beginning, they usually purposefully requested not to be served by Elphaba, but that was inconvenient for the staff, so Idonea and Alun instated a policy that customers could not request their servers.

"If you have a problem with the service, file a complaint or leave," Alun told Galinda and her friends, when they complained.

It wasn't all of them, some students were friendly enough. The girl in the wheelchair, Nessarose Thropp and her friend Boq were friendly enough. They were polite when they saw Elphaba and occasionally made light conversation, but they never went out of their way to talk to her.

It was a Friday in early October. Elphaba had rushed to the restaurant from her only class that day and had turned up to find chaos. Nalini had to go home early because she was sick, Alun was in the Emerald City, so it was only Dev and Kaylan there holding down the fort.

"We've been trying to find Ankita," Dev told Elphaba as she hurriedly threw on the black apron she wore over her black dress. "Idonea went to her apartment but no one was there."

"She's off this weekend, going to see her boyfriend in Gilikin, remember?" Elphaba reminded him. "Where's Idonea now?"

"She's out the back, sorting out a mess with the deliveries. And typically, this all hits when we're having the busiest lunch rush we've had in weeks and I haven't gotten my lunch break."

"Let me get a handle on things in here, and I can cover you," Elphaba promised him.

He grinned at her. "You're a doll, snow pea."

Elphaba rolled her eyes and went to work.

As promised, once Elphaba felt she was somewhat on top of everything, she sent Dev for his break. She'd seen Idonea, who had promised to be out to help as soon as she'd sorted out the mix up and dramas with their suppliers.

"Uh, excuse me? Green girl?"

Elphaba whirled around as she was heading towards the kitchen with an armful of dirty dishes.

There was a tall boy standing at the entrance, leaning casually against the podium where the menus and reservation book were kept for seating people. He had bluish-grey eyes and curly dark blonde hair. He had a newspaper folded up in his hand and was casually tapping it against his other palm. Elphaba couldn't help but notice he was very handsome. He looked slightly familiar, but she couldn't place the face.

"Can I help you?" she asked coolly, but politely. He may be a customer, but she didn't take well to being addressed as "green girl", as true as that description may be.

He looked around the restaurant before answering. "Uh, yeah- any chance of getting a table any time soon?"

"There's a fifteen minute wait on a table," she replied curtly, the dishes in her arms beginning to strain.

The boy raised an eyebrow. He seemed vaguely amused and surprised, although Elphaba couldn't imagine why. It was almost as though she was expected to know him. "So… that's a no?"

"I'll seat you as soon as I can," Elphaba promised vaguely and hurried off before he could say anything else.

"Order's up for table six," Kaylan greeted her as she entered the kitchen and set the empty dishes on the bench.

"Got it," she replied with a nod and a quick smile, picking up the order and heading back out to the restaurant.

After giving table six their orders, Elphaba whipped out a rag and hastily wiped down the table she had cleared moments earlier. Then table four ordered more drinks and she had to go fill that order. She was just heading back towards the front of the room when a party of four entered who had made a reservation the day before, so she seated them at the table she'd just cleared.

The boy, who was still waiting, caught her attention as she was coming back to the bar to get their drinks.

"Did you forget me? I'm pretty sure I was here first."

Elphaba looked at him calmly. "They had a reservation. Do you have a reservation?"

"Nope. I'm just passing through, saw this place and thought I'd check it out."

"Well, there's still a ten minute wait on a table if you care to wait."

Elphaba could feel him watching her as she bustled around delivering food, drinks and clearing tables or cleaning when needed. But whenever she looked in his direction, he made a big show of examining his newspaper.

She was just behind the bar, getting yet more drinks and hoping desperately that Dev would be back from his break soon, when the boy leaned over the side wall that separated the bar from the foyer.

"Hey-"

Elphaba snapped. "Look," she said brusquely, turning to him. "We are short staffed, busy and I am doing the job of three people here. I'm sorry, but I will seat you as soon as it is possible, okay? If you don't like it, you're free to leave."

The boy raised his hands in surrender. "Hey, I was just going to ask you when your birthday was."

Elphaba was surprised and suspicious. "Why?"

"Making conversation?" he suggested.

Elphaba paused, but answered, figuring at least then she could get back to work. "April twelfth."

He nodded slowly, as though pondering that. "April twelfth. Thanks."

"No worries," Elphaba muttered, picking up the drinks and walking away.

It was when she was back at the bar a few minutes later that he spoke again.

"Uh, oh. You might want to see this."

Elphaba looked up, startled by his tone. "See what?"

He waved the paper at her casually. "Your horoscope."

Elphaba snorted. "I don't believe any of that rubbish."

He grinned. "No? Well, I think you might want to check this one. You're an Aries, right?"

"I guess," she replied slowly.

"That's a coincidence. I'm a Leo. Our signs are compatible, did you know that?"

Elphaba stared at him as though he had two heads. "No, I didn't know that."

"Well, you really will want to see this," he said pushing the paper towards her.

Cautiously, she took the paper he offered and looked at the horoscopes page. And there, next to Aries, was something scribbled in an unfamiliar handwriting.

"You will meet a handsome, charming and persistent young man today. If you seat him and give him food, he'll go away," she read aloud.

Then she looked up at him and smirked. "Thanks for that. Let me know if he shows up, will you?"

He laughed and merely looked at her, smiling charmingly.

Elphaba wanted to be able to ignore him, but she felt as though her face was turning red the longer he looked at her. She resisted for a moment longer before rolling her eyes. "You could eat at the bar if you're desperate, I suppose."

"I'm desperate," he replied quickly, and she gestured for him to take a seat at the bar.

Elphaba grabbed a menu and handed to him as he seated himself at the bar. He made a big show of studying it and ignoring Elphaba as she waited impatiently. Finally, she picked up her pencil that she used to take orders and hastily wrote something next to the horoscope for Leo.

Without saying anything, she slid the paper back over to him and walked away to clear a few more tables as people left. She purposely didn't look back at the boy, so she didn't see his reaction as he picked up the paper with interest and saw what she had written.

'_You will meet a green waitress today. Do not keep her waiting and tip her well, and she won't spit in your food.'_

When she returned to the bar a minute later, he was still chuckling to himself.

"Are you ready to order or do you need another minute?" she asked, extra sweetly.

He only grinned. "No, I'm good."

Dev came back just as she finished taking down his order, so Elphaba's need to spend much time at the bar was greatly reduced. She didn't even interact with the boy again until she was collecting a drink order as he was paying his bill.

"Hey, green girl?"

Elphaba turned to him, frowning at the 'green girl' title once again. He was ripping a little bit out of the paper and he handed it to her with the bill. When Elphaba looked down, she saw it was a generous tip in addition to the bill, and the tiny Aries horoscope.

"In case that guy turns up," he winked at her. "You should hang on to it. It might bring you luck."

Elphaba said nothing, she couldn't before he turned and walked away.

"Who's the guy, sugar snap?" Dev asked and Elphaba turned to him, rolling her eyes.

"Really, Dev? How do you make a vegetable sound like a sickening nickname?" she demanded.

He shrugged. "It's a gift."

She rolled her eyes again as she picked up the tray of drinks to deliver. Almost subconsciously, she slipped the paper into her apron pocket.

Elphaba was only doing a five hour shift that day, and she had almost an hour to go when Idonea pulled her aside.

"Nalini was supposed to work at the OzDust tonight, but she obviously can't now. Are you interested in covering her shift?"

Elphaba's eyes widened in surprise. She'd never worked at the OzDust before, but it was that little bit extra money that she never passed up an opportunity for.

"Sure, I can do that. What time?"

"Seven to eleven, that okay?"

Elphaba nodded eagerly. "No worries."

It would only give her two hours between finishing _Identity _and starting at the OzDust, but the extra money from working tonight would allow her to maybe treat herself come payday.

When she entered the OzDust Ballroom that night, she was surprised by the crowd. There were many kids she recognised faintly from Shiz, and it seemed as if the whole campus was there.

"It's like one big party," she muttered to herself, making her way through the room to find the duty manager.

She soon realised, that that was exactly what it was. Elphaba was surprised that she felt slighted for not knowing about the party, although she hadn't expected to be invited. How long had they been planning this party?

But that aside, she was enjoying the work. It was just bar work, a matter of delivering drinks and clearing tables, but the whole atmosphere was different than working at _Identity. _About twenty minutes into her shift, she was making her way through the crowd with a tray of punch when she found herself facing Nessarose and Boq.

"Oh, hi, Elphaba," Boq greeted her.

"Hi. Would you like some punch?" she offered.

"What's in it?" Nessarose asked her.

"Melons, lemons and pears," Elphaba replied, supressing the urge to wrinkle her nose.

"Oh, my!" Nessarose exclaimed and politely refused a cup, as did Boq.

"So, what's the occasion?" Elphaba asked, gesturing to the room and Boq looked surprised.

"You haven't heard?"

At her questioning glance, Nessarose explained. "We have a new student. Fiyero Tiggular, the Vinkun prince?"

Elphaba had heard of him, of course, he had quite the "scandalacious" reputation and many of the teenage girls in the orphanage had had pictures of him cut out from magazines in their rooms over the past few years, swooning over him- and his hair.

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah, he's over there- with Galinda," Boq pointed.

Elphaba looked over, although she really wasn't that interested and got a jolt of surprise. For there, on Galinda's arm, was the handsome, charming boy from the restaurant at lunch.

"_That's _Fiyero Tiggular?" she asked in surprise. Of course, now she realised why he'd looked faintly familiar and felt slightly stupid for not recognising him, even though she'd never really noticed all the magazine articles about him.

"Yeah. He's taller than I imagined," Boq grumbled, and Elphaba supressed a laugh. It was a well- known fact around campus that Boq was head over heels in love with Galinda, and seeing her draped all over Fiyero Tiggular must not be a beautiful image to the Munchkin boy.

Although Elphaba was surprised at the twinge of jealously she felt seeing him with Galinda.

"Sorry, Boq," Elphaba apologised with a faint smile and excused herself.

Despite what was in it, the melons, lemons and pears punch disappeared fairly quickly. Elphaba was just cleaning up a few tables littered with empty glasses when she found herself face to face with Galinda, who looked just as unimpressed to see Elphaba as Elphaba felt to see her.

"What are _you _doing here?" she sneered.

"Salsa dancing," Elphaba replied dryly, because honestly, the apron and tray were kind of self- explanatory.

Galinda scoffed. "Please. You don't work here."

"I picked up a few extra shifts here. I'm sorry, I didn't know I needed your approval," she replied coldly.

The blonde girl smirked. "Don't think you can show up here and get in with the popular kids. It doesn't work like that."

"I'm working," Elphaba said flatly. "I'm here for no other reason than I'm getting paid to do so. Believe me, I have better things to do with my time than to pretend I give a damn about what colours are "in" this season."

The two girls glared at one another, then a male voice broke the silence. "Hey, Galinda, did you want-" Fiyero broke off mid-sentence as he saw who his date was talking with.

"Well, if it isn't the green girl," he greeted her. "Welcome to the party."

She stared at him, unimpressed. "I'm working."

"Hi, working. I'm Fiyero," he replied and extended his hand.

Elphaba raised an eyebrow but sighed and took it, a little surprised he was willing to touch the green girl.

She felt a slight flutter in her stomach at his touch. "Elphaba," she introduced herself quickly, and pulled her hand back quickly.

Galinda slid an arm around Fiyero's waist and giggled. "Dearest, I was just asking… Elphaba, here to bring me a drink. Would you like one?"

"Sure," Fiyero agreed easily. "What are we having?"

Galinda turned back to face Elphaba. "Two Ozmopolitans," she ordered brusquely, her tone making it perfectly clear that Elphaba was just an employee.

Elphaba forced a tight smile. "Coming up."

"Who's that?" Fiyero asked Galinda as Elphaba disappeared and they joined a group of kids.

Galinda shrugged dismissively. "Some scholarship student. She's an _orphan," _she added in a low voice, as though it were a shameful secret.

"And a freak," Pfannee added. "I mean- she's _green."_

"Such a low class," another boy added quietly. "I can't believe they let her in, even if she is so smart."

"It brings down the whole university," Shen-Shen agreed.

Fiyero said nothing, just took it all in. So, the green girl was an orphan… she definitely didn't fit in with the rest of the students at Shiz. But still… there was something about her that intrigued him. He just wasn't sure why.

**AN. Yes, I changed Fiyero's entrance and Elphaba/Fiyero's meeting. I wasn't going to originally, but then I was having a _Gilmore Girls _marathon and the whole Luke and Lorelai story… I just had the idea and I think it works! **

**By the way, in case no one knows what a sugar snap is (I know sometimes vegetables have different names in different countries, or don't exist at all), it's a type of pea. **

**And it is 100% coincidental that Fiyero is a Leo, as is David Harris who is the current Australian Fiyero. It literally is, I promise. The fact they look the same is not, but the star sign thing is a fluke. **


	7. Chapter 7

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. I'm updating early because I'm going to Melbourne tomorrow to see ANNIE and won't be able to post as per schedule. Sorry Liana- just the one chapter! :P**

**Seven**

As the semester wore on, Elphaba did something she never thought she'd do- she began to long for the three week break over Lurlinemas that was just under a month and a half away. The teachers were really beginning to pile on the readings, homework and assignments; and having proved her value as an employee, her shifts at _Identity _(and sometimes the OzDust) were becoming more numbered and longer hours.

Elphaba wasn't about to knock back the extra work- her landlord had just increased her rent and the utilities for the crapartment were more than she had been expecting and hence budgeted for. But it was getting so she was getting up earlier or going to bed later in order to stay on top of all her schoolwork. She hadn't slept well all semester either, she wasn't used to being alone; and as much as she appreciated the space and silence, it was quite another thing to be alone at night with the sounds of the town outside her window, when the neighbourhood wasn't exactly top notch and her building had little security.

So, she was tired, stressed and busy. The situation at Shiz with her peers still hadn't improved either. Fiyero didn't even talk to Elphaba anymore, although she wasn't sure if that was because he had discovered she was an orphan and had likewise decided she was beneath him or because his girlfriend had ordered him not to. And she was trying to convince herself she wasn't hurt by the sudden cold shoulder.

Yes, Fiyero Tiggular and Galinda Upland were the "it" couple of Shiz University. They were at every party together, and from the rumours floating around campus, an engagement was already imminent, despite the fact they'd only been dating for a few weeks. So, all in all, Elphaba couldn't wait for the holidays- even if that only meant seeing less of Galinda and her posse.

There was a bright side though- Elphaba had saved and saved, and managed to squirrel away enough spare cash to purchase a piano from a pawn shop in town. It was old and scratched, but it played music and to Elphaba, it gave the crapartment the first semblance of feeling like a home.

Plus, in the last week or so, she'd started to have her old dreams again- dreams she hadn't had in years. The familiar lullaby was once again haunting her sleep, and Elphaba wasn't sure why.

She wasn't thrillified when her Politics teacher, Dr Benh, announced their next assignment would be a group presentation. Elphaba loathed group presentations. She much preferred to work independently, you just couldn't trust that whoever was in your group would take the assignment as seriously as you would and put the effort in to reflect that.

"This assignment will be completed in pairs, and you will be paired randomly," she told them.

Elphaba was tense as she waited to hear who she would be paired with.

"Bayley, Murtand… Thropp, Smooter… Rozek, Tiggular…"

Elphaba's heart sank. Great, so she was paired with someone who not only wouldn't talk to her, but who's attendance was minimum and his effort even less so- if that were possible. This boded well. She saw all her hopes of getting an 'A' for this assignment vanishing before her very eyes.

She looked around to find Fiyero, who was actually in class that day and sitting four rows from the back of the room. He wasn't looking at her, taking notes or paying attention to the teacher. He was scribbling something, but Elphaba doubted it was notes.

As she waited for class to finish, she formed a plan. She wanted this 'A', and she wasn't going to let Fiyero's lack of effort get in the way of that. The plan was to talk to him after class, before he left and returned to Galinda. But considering he was much further from the door than she was, he was gone as soon as the bell went, and Elphaba had no choice but to chase after him.

He headed straight to the garden overlooking Suicide Canal where Galinda and her posse of giggling, snooty girls were enjoying the last of the fall sunshine before winter set in. Elphaba hated the thought of having to interact with those girls, but she didn't have a choice.

So, she straightened up, took a deep breath and marched right up to Fiyero.

"Fiyero?"

He looked up from his conversation with his friends Cailean and Fyonn. "Hey, green girl," he greeted her, but the title sounded less friendly and warm than it had that first day in _Identity. _"Can I help you?"

"I need to talk to you. About the assignment," she said flatly, not beating around the bush.

"Sure," Fiyero agreed. "Let's step into my office, shall we?"

He winked at Fyonn and got up from the group, moving over to a bench a short distance away and looking back at Elphaba to follow him.

She supressed a roll of her eyes, walked over and sat down stiffly.

"Here's what's going to happen. This assignment is worth forty per cent of our final grade, and I want to do well. We're going to meet at least three times a week to work on this- together. You're going to do your fair share and take this project seriously. We're going to work our meeting times around my work shifts and no complaining if it takes you away from your social life. Are there any questions?"

Fiyero raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Yeah, do I get a say in any of this?"

"No," she refused immediately.

"Well, then, it looks like you've got it all planned, GG," he said casually.

It was Elphaba's turn to raise an eyebrow. "GG?"

"It takes an awful lot of time to say 'Green Girl', and if we're going to spend all this time together, I should come up with something easier to call you," he explained.

"You could call me by my name?" Elphaba suggested dryly.

He studied her critically. "I don't know… you don't really look like an 'Elphaba.'"

"And what do I look like exactly?" she asked coldly, feeling like she was walking into a trap of some sorts.

But his answer surprised her. "Fae."

She blinked in surprise. "Fae?"

"You really don't like GG?"

"I really don't," she confirmed.

He grinned. "Then Fae it is. See you around, Fae."

Fiyero got up and left before she could protest that name too.

"Fiyero?" she called after him, and he turned.

"Tomorrow afternoon, two o'clock. Our first meeting. Outside the library."

He merely waved in acknowledgment and strolled off, leaving Elphaba sitting there, wondering just what she was getting into here.

She was hopeful in the beginning- Fiyero arrived promptly on two o'clock, and she dared to hope that this was a good sign and indication of how the project would go. That optimistic feeling lasted all of a minute as they exchanged pleasantries with one another.

Fiyero insisted on sneaking into the library, lest someone should see him enter the building.

"I can't tarnish my reputation," he explained to Elphaba.

Elphaba knew his reputation, and it was all she could do to keep from laughing or retorting sarcastically.

"So… what do we have to do exactly?" Fiyero asked when they were in the library.

She looked at him in exasperation. "Weren't you listening to Dr Benh?"

"I know she said I was working with you," he shrugged, which Elphaba took as a "no."

"We're supposed to pick a political issue and create a presentation about how its affected Oz? From the list she gave us with the assignment? We have to present to the class and summarise it for them? With the fact sheet they can use to study for finals? Is this ringing any bells?"

"I remember the fact sheet," Fiyero offered.

Elphaba breathed a sigh of relief. "Good."

"Because I remember thinking about how it's really going to help limit my studying load for finals," he grinned.

She scoffed. "Please, like you study."

"Hey, I could study!" Fiyero protested.

At her pointed stare, he added admittedly. "Ok, so I don't actually study that much. But I _could, _if I wanted to."

"If you wanted to…" Elphaba repeated under her breath.

"So, what political issue are we doing?"

Elphaba pulled out the list from Dr Benh. "I was thinking we could do this one. The debt of the Glikkus from ten years ago? What happened, how they dealt with it, what the current financial state of the province is?"

Fiyero shrugged. "Sure, whatever."

"Is there one part you want to research in particular?"

He stared at her blankly. "Research? You want me to research?"

Elphaba was lost for words for a moment. "You're _kidding _me, right?"

Fiyero laughed and broke into a laugh. "Yes, I'm kidding, Fae. I mean, I hope you're not expecting anything brilliant. But I suppose it's only fair I share the load."

Elphaba bristled. It was only _fair _that he did his part for their _group _assignment? That was rich.

Fiyero kept to his word, and shared responsibility for the research, although it was reluctant and half-hearted.

He also agreed to Elphaba's rule of meeting three times a week, and working around her shifts, although he kept the time strictly limited to an hour. Then he would dash away to a date with Galinda or to meet Cailean and Fyonn for drinks or a night out. Elphaba was careful to keep the topic of conversation- as little conversation as it was- focused on the assignment or school. Fiyero often tried to ask little questions about Elphaba's life before Shiz, but she always refused to answer.

Galinda was actually nastier to Elphaba than usual, given the situation. Elphaba had heard whispers of rumours that she was trying to steal Fiyero away from Galinda, but they didn't bother her. So, Galinda and her friends had simply fallen to showering Fiyero with pity and condolences that he was being forced to spend time with the Artichoke Girl.

It was the end of the first week, and Elphaba was finding herself with a rare Friday afternoon off. She wasn't working at _Identity _until six o'clock that night, and she wasn't sure what to do with herself.

It was lunchtime and remembering she had no food in the crapartment, Elphaba had decided to have lunch in the Shiz cafeteria. The food wasn't too bad and it was cheap, and sometimes in between pays, it was the only decent meal she ate each day.

As she stood there, holding her tray of soup and bread, she looked around, wondering where to sit. It was crowded today, and she could practically see the whole cafeteria mutually thinking "Please don't let her sit here."

Finally, she saw Nessarose and Boq sitting together at an otherwise empty table. Elphaba debated for a moment, then approached them, figuring they were probably those who talked to her the most.

"Hi. Do you mind if I sit here?" she asked, feeling uncharacteristically awkward.

"No, go ahead," Nessarose replied, with a faint smile.

Elphaba sat down next to Nessarose and across from Boq and began to eat quietly. Finally, Boq broke the silence.

"So, how'd you go on the history exam, Elphaba?"

Elphaba paused, swallowed slowly and cleared her throat before answering. "I did okay. You?"

"B-plus," Boq replied happily. "What's 'okay'?"

"A- minus," Elphaba admitted.

Nessa chuckled. "I'd say that's more than okay, Elphaba! That's really good!"

Elphaba shrugged. "I could have gotten an A. I just… ran out of time. I didn't explain a few points as well as I could have."

She wasn't going to admit she'd written half of it at three in the morning the day it was due, after working a nine hour shift at the OzDust.

Boq seemed as though he were about to speak for a moment, and then obviously decided he wasn't going to argue with Elphaba about being unhappy with an A- minus.

"Are you working tonight?"

Elphaba nodded. "Yes. Six to ten."

"Is that at _Identity _or the _OzDust?" _Nessarose asked.

"_Identity."_

"Which do you prefer?"

Elphaba paused for a moment, and then forced herself to relax. If Boq and Nessarose were going to make an effort at conversation, she could do the same, right?

"I like _Identity _better," she admitted. "The _OzDust _is a bit more money, but the restaurant's quieter. There's more of a rhythm to it. It has falls and lows. The _OzDust _is just… constant. More tiring. And people generally tip better at the restaurant which I kind of rely on."

"You're on a scholarship, aren't you?"

"Partial scholarship," she corrected Boq.

He nodded. "Right. So, what does that cover?"

"Tuition," Elphaba replied.

He and Nessarose looked surprised. "That's it?"

She nodded. "That's it."

"So, your pay…"

"Is for books, rent, bills and living expenses," Elphaba said shortly, not comfortable with discussing her finances.

So, she changed the subject.

"Are you both doing anything for the holidays?"

"Just going back to Munchkinland," Nessarose spoke for them both. "The last few years, our families have gotten together for Lurlinemas. We're next door neighbours," she explained.

"So, you've been friends for how long?"

"Well, we've always known each other. Through play dates and school," Boq explained. "But when Nessa moved next door, we became best friends. That must have been…"

"It'll be three years ago in April," Nessa said quietly, looking at her hands.

Elphaba recalled what she knew about Nessa's family- her father's tragic death forcing her and her mother out of their home.

"I'm sorry about your father," she said quietly and Nessarose gave a faint smile.

"Thank you. I miss him dreadfully. I'll never forget that day… April twelfth."

Elphaba startled a little. "April twelfth?"

Nessarose looked surprised. "Y-yes," she stammered. "Why?"

"Oh, nothing," Elphaba answered quickly. "I was just… surprised. That's my birthday," she explained.

"Really?" Boq asked in interest.

"Well… as best as we can figure," Elphaba shrugged. "They found me at the orphanage on the morning of the thirteenth, and the doctor estimated I was less than a day old. So… April twelfth."

"And you were just left on the doorstep?" Nessarose asked quietly.

Elphaba nodded, feeling uncomfortable about the look of pity in her eyes.

"I should go," she said quickly, standing up. "Er…thanks. For letting me sit here," she said awkwardly.

"Any time," Nessarose replied, and Elphaba almost believed she meant it.


	8. Chapter 8

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. I kind of love Fiyero in this story. I haven't gotten to write him like this for a long time- at least it feels that way to me. **

**Eight**

LIBRARY CLOSED FOR STOCKTAKE.

Elphaba groaned as she looked at the sign that was hanging on the library doors. It was the Saturday before their Politics assignment was due, and she and Fiyero had arranged to meet at the library bright and early to begin working out some of the finer details of their presentation, before Elphaba was due to work at _Identity _that afternoon at three and then the OzDust that night.

"I _did _tell you," Fiyero chimed in helpfully from behind her. "Remember, like fifteen seconds ago at the bottom of the stairs?"

"Well, forgive me if I don't want to take your word for it," Elphaba snapped back.

Fiyero pretended to be hurt. "Jeez, you try and convince a girl _once_ that the library burned down and she doesn't trust you. That hurts, Fae."

Elphaba rolled her eyes as she turned to face him. "Well, we're just going to have to find somewhere else to work, that's all."

"There's always my room," Fiyero said suggestively and Elphaba scoffed, although she knew she was blushing.

"Dream on, prince boy."

"Prince boy?" Fiyero repeated, raising an eyebrow.

Elphaba raised hers in reply. "What, you can call me 'green girl', but I can't call you 'prince boy'?"

"Hey, I haven't called you 'green girl' in like a week," Fiyero protested.

"I'm sorry, it's Fae now, isn't it?" Elphaba mocked. "So, I should make up a nickname for you that makes no sense?"

"How about we just find somewhere to work?" Fiyero suggested, changing the subject.

She sighed. "Sure. Any ideas?"

"I already suggested my room, an idea which you rudely rejected. It's your turn."

Elphaba thought for a moment. "We could use a classroom? It's Saturday, they'll all be empty. And I'm sure Dr Dillamond would let us use his room."

Fiyero looked horrified. "A classroom? No way. I see enough of the things during the week."

"Oh please, how often are you in class?" she demanded.

Fiyero grinned at her, and then had an idea. "Wait- don't you live off campus?"

Elphaba froze abruptly. "Yes," she said slowly.

"So, can't we just go to your place? Wherever it is you live?"

Elphaba had to work hard to keep the flinch she was feeling off her face. Allow Fiyero Tiggular to see the crapartment? No. Definitely not.

"I don't think that's a good idea," she stammered.

"Why not? We need somewhere to work, and your place will have food, right?"

Elphaba frantically racked her brain as to whether there was actually food in her cupboards. "I think so," she said vaguely, recalling a faint image of a loaf of bread and a can of soup in her kitchen.

"So, lead the way," Fiyero gestured.

Elphaba was frantically thinking of a place, anywhere they could go, and reasons as to why they couldn't go to the crapartment. But she could think of none.

Reluctantly, she turned and led the way down the library steps, cursing the librarians for deciding to do stocktake right now.

She didn't talk the whole distance between campus and her neighbourhood, and her legs felt like lead the closer they got. She couldn't even look at Fiyero as they entered the building and climbed the staircase to the crapartment, who to his credit, said nothing.

As she unlocked the door, Elphaba uttered a final silent prayer that she'd left the place in _some _semblance of a presentable state, and opened the door.

"Here we are," she said quietly, allowing him to step inside and bracing herself for his reaction.

As she watched him look around, Elphaba tried to see the place through his eyes. The bare walls and wooden floorboards, making the room look colder than it was. The ancient stove in the kitchen (that only worked half the time) with the single cupboard and icebox for storing cold food. The lone mattress on the floor, covered with a few blankets and pillows. The piles and piles of books lining the walls, in no real order. The single, simple wooden wardrobe in one corner, which had one door propped shut to keep it from falling off. The tiny table and chairs, none of which matched. The two windows, neither letting in enough light to warm the place up and neither having blinds or curtains. The tiny bathroom, visible through the open door with the rust-stained sink and the small tin bathtub. And the old, scratched piano sitting under the window, it's keys yellowed with age.

Elphaba was sure compared to the castle Fiyero was used to, the crapartment- and she- would seem light a huge joke. And she felt like a huge joke too.

And Fiyero saw all of it, as he looked around. But he made an effort not to appear horrified by the primitive space and simply turned to her, seeing her apprehensive expression as she waited for his reaction.

"Do you want to work at the table?" he asked casually.

Elphaba couldn't hide her surprise. "That's it? That's all you have to say?"

Fiyero paused. "Do you have any food?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes, and headed over to check. When she opened the fridge, she found half a cake Idonea had told her to take home when she had done the closing shift two nights before.

"Cake?"

"Perfect," Fiyero grinned.

They settled down to work with their cake at the small table. Fiyero did his usual routine of procrastinating and sighing before actually putting pen to paper, but eventually started contributing- as he always did when they met to work on the assignment.

Finally, Fiyero spoke. He couldn't help himself.

"You know, you should really decorate this place," he suggested, putting down his pen and looking around the room.

Elphaba paused in the middle of writing a sentence. "Excuse me?"

"Dec-or-ate," he repeated slowly, a teasing glint in his eyes. "You know, it's a verb. It means to furnish, provide, or adorn with something ornamental; embellish. Like a rug, or a picture? I thought girls were all about decorating. To make it look 'pretty' or whatever?"

"Well, call me crazy," Elphaba said dryly. "But if there's a choice about paying my bills and decorating the place, I'm going to go with the bills. Funnily enough. Besides, who needs decorations? You're the first person to see this place besides me, and I honest to Oz don't care what it looks like."

Fiyero nodded to the wall behind him. "You've got a piano. That's kind of decorative."

Elphaba stilled. "I guess," she said uncomfortably.

"Do you play?"

"No, I use it as a plant holder," she replied sarcastically.

Fiyero chuckled. "Can I hear something?"

Her answer was immediate. "No. Get back to work."

Elphaba was stiff and self-conscious the entire time Fiyero was in the crapartment. But he never commented about the slight chill that persisted in hanging around the room, or about the bathroom when he asked to use her toilet. And she couldn't really work out why. This was a boy who had done nothing but tease her since they'd first met. And although he'd never been outwardly cruel to her, like Galinda and her friends; he'd never gone out of his way to talk to her or defend her. He mostly just ignored her.

But she was pleased with the amount of work they got done before she had to get ready for work. They'd pretty much finished everything, and had a final meeting planned for the morning their assignment was due to do a final run-through.

Elphaba checked the time and rose from her seat. "I should get ready for work," she said.

"OK," Fiyero agreed, but made no move to leave.

Rolling her eyes, Elphaba grabbed one of her more presentable black dresses that she wore to work and took it into the bathroom to change and to pin her hair up, the way Idonea and Alun preferred it for work.

When she came out, she noticed Fiyero standing at the piano, looking through a small pile of sheet music she had lying on top.

"What are you doing?" Elphaba demanded, striding over and snatching them from him.

He looked slightly apologetic. "Sorry. I was just looking."

"These are private," she said coldly.

"I'm sorry, Elphaba," Fiyero repeated earnestly.

Using her real name told Elphaba he was sincere, and she hesitantly softened. "It's fine. I have to get going. My shift starts in twenty minutes."

Fiyero nodded. "OK, no worries."

They headed downstairs together and when they reached the street, Elphaba paused.

"Fiyero? Please don't tell anyone. About…"

Lost for words, she gestured silently to her apartment building, and Fiyero nodded.

"Sure, Fae. It'll be our little secret," he promised. He knew exactly why. People at Shiz definitely had enough to talk about with Elphaba without knowing where or how she lived.

As he walked away to head back to campus, he smiled slightly to himself. He had his own secret. But he wasn't exactly sure why it gave him so much pleasure that when he'd picked up a book that lay next to the mattress on Elphaba's floor, a bookmark had fallen from the pages.

A little scrap of paper from an old newspaper- an Aries horoscope with a few scribbled words next to the text. "_You will meet a handsome, charming and persistent young man today. If you seat him and give him food, he'll go away."_

And he certainly wasn't going to tell anyone about a similar scrap of paper that sat in an envelope in his nightstand alongside letters from his parents.

Fiyero and Elphaba never imagined that they were both thinking the same thing about those tiny scraps of paper- they weren't sure why they were keeping them, but neither could bring themselves to throw them away.

**AN. Yep, they have fridges in Oz. Anyone who reads my blog will know more about this.**


	9. Chapter 9

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. I'm sitting here in Adelaide airport and thought "hey, I may as well update!" So, here you are!**

**And to Drea... no. :)**

**And this chapter is for ComingandGoingbyBubble, who's review for chapter 8 made me laugh- because I knew what was coming!**

Nine

Fiyero and Elphaba's presentation and assignment went well. Although Fiyero complained to Elphaba that now his teachers would be expecting that level of achievement for all his classes and assignments, he was kind of pleased with how it had gone.

Mostly, however, he was confusified.

When he'd first met Elphaba- that day in _Identity, _he'd thought she was pretty, feisty and funny. Green, yes, and the complete opposite of every other girl he'd ever dated; but overall, attractive.

And then Galinda had told him about her. That she was an orphan, and only at Shiz on a scholarship.

Now, Fiyero didn't like to think of himself as a snob. But he was a prince. And as a prince, and the future King of the Vinkus, his parents had drilled into him his whole life the importance of connections. Meeting the right people.

Even the girls he'd dated were all socialites, the type of girls who had debutante balls, could use the right fork at the dinner table, and were the essence of proper young ladies of good breeding. In short- their families had money and understood the social hierarchy. These girls, like Fiyero's mother had, would get an education, marry well and then spend their lives raising children, running their homes and hosting functions. Balls, dinner parties and charity fundraisers… Fiyero had lost count of how many he'd been to since he was a child.

But this was the world he had grown up in, the social circles he was expected to move within, and one day- marry from within. In recent years, Fiyero had enjoyed making the most of the perks and freedoms that came with all of it- knowing he didn't have to work too hard for anything or try too hard, and being free to simply dance through life and have a good time. But he was always aware of what was expected of him- and that was more than enough reason to rebel against all of it, in his books.

Galinda and her friends fit very well into the world Fiyero knew. They were the sort of people his parents would approve of- he wouldn't be surprised if his parents and Galinda's knew one another, or at least had mutual friends.

"That's a smart match," Fiyero knew his mother would say if he knew he and Galinda were dating.

Which may be exactly why he hadn't told her.

Because simply, he was more intrigued by Elphaba Rozek- the orphan girl.

If he was to date someone like Elphaba- not even mentioning the fact that she was green, but simply that she was an orphan, his parents would throw a fit. They would insist, he knew, that she was not good enough for Fiyero and not fit to be a princess or the future queen of the Vinkus.

In the beginning, Fiyero had dealt with this simply by staying away from her, by ignoring her and focusing on Galinda. But since he'd been working on this assignment with Elphaba, he'd gotten to know her a little bit more.

And she was even more fascinating. She was brilliant, Fiyero could see why she had won a scholarship. And she was witty, fiercely independent, and still beautiful- even with the green. The Emerald tone of her skin seemed to suit her like no one else- anyone else would look ridiculous with green skin, but Fiyero couldn't imagine Elphaba any other way.

He wasn't too sure what to do about what he was feeling.

"It's just a crush," he told himself. "You can't date her."

He knew that was true. Not only because of his parents' reaction, or the fact he was still dating Galinda, but because Fiyero wasn't exactly a commitment kind of guy. Yes, he was dating Galinda, but it was very casual and not at all serious. He'd had a few relationships, but none lasted more than two months (a deadline he and Galinda were only a week off) and they'd all ended badly.

If Fiyero was honest with himself, he liked Elphaba too much to want to go down that road with her. And although a little voice suggested that maybe it could be different this time, he wasn't going to entertain that thought.

But that didn't make the feelings go away. And the more he was aware of them, the more he began to notice little details. Like how Galinda was always giggling modestly about how "good" she was and being nice to (mostly) everyone on campus, when it was just their group, she gossiped and complained about half of them. It was obvious to Fiyero that the Munchkin boy, Boq, had a huge crush on Galinda; but the blonde still addressed him as "Bick."

And then there was Elphaba, whom she taunted, mocked and generally insulted in every conversation.

"Galinda, I think we should break up."

Galinda broke off from her recount of a recent shopping trip with Pfannee, Shen-Shen and Milla and gaped at Fiyero. The two were sitting in the local campus coffee shop, _The Wilted Rose, _and Fiyero's comment had come from nowhere.

"Excuse me?" she gasped, thinking she'd misheard.

"I think we should break up," Fiyero repeated.

Galinda started at him for a moment, then giggled loudly. "Oh! You're joking! Fiyero, don't _do _that! You almost gave me a heart attack!"

"I'm not joking, Galinda," Fiyero said gently.

It took Galinda a moment to truly believe that. "You're breaking up with me? You can't! Do you realise that everyone on campus looks up to us as the perfect couple? How many people I've had tell me that we are what makes them believe in true love?" Galinda demanded.

"Well, maybe they're wrong," Fiyero replied.

Galinda wasn't going down without a fight. "But… when we met… _you _said we were perfect together. You said that _I _was perfect," she said, tears welling up in her blue eyes.

Fiyero winced. "Yes. But, Galinda… we'd just met. I barely knew you."

"Are you saying I'm not perfect?" Galinda demanded shrilly.

Fiyero sighed. "Galinda, _no one _is perfect."

"Give me one good reason why we're not the perfect couple?" she retorted hotly.

Fiyero hesitated, then decided to be honest. He sat up straight in his chair, and looked her in the eyes.

"Because I don't like this '_aren't I good?' _act that almost everyone on campus swallows."

Galinda looked as though she'd been slapped. "What are you talking about?"

Fiyero looked around and saw Boq sitting with Nessarose and surprisingly, Elphaba, at a table on the other side of the room.

"There's the perfect example at that table. What's that boy's name?"

Galinda frowned. "You mean Bick?"

"It's Boq," Fiyero corrected her. "You go around acting like you're everyone's best friend, but you don't even know his name. And it's not for lack of trying on his part, I can tell you."

"I- I don't understand what you're saying," Galinda stammered.

"And what about Elphaba?" Fiyero continued, and Galinda stiffened.

"What _about _her?"

"Well…what has she ever done to you? I don't understand why you're so horrendible to her all the time. Is it because of her skin colour?"

Galinda faltered and turned discreetly to look over at the table where the girl in question was sitting. She observed her closely, as she tried to put her feelings towards Elphaba into words. She saw her long black hair pulled back into a tight braid, the same as she wore to class every day. Her black, unfashionable clothing that hung off her bony frame and the glasses that sat on her nose. And of course, the bright green colour of her skin.

She couldn't actually pinpoint what it was about Elphaba that irritated her so. She felt a little embarrassed by that, but ignored the feeling and looked away.

"She doesn't belong here," she said finally, turning back to Fiyero.

"Why? Because she was raised in an orphanage? Because she worked hard to get a scholarship? Because she works instead of living off a trust fund like you and I, or any of our friends? Because she wants to be here?"

Once again, Galinda couldn't answer and decided the best way to reply was to turn the question back on Fiyero.

"Why do you care?" Galinda demanded. "Do you like her or something?"

"I'm getting to know her," Fiyero retorted. "Which is something that can't be said for many people here. I just think you should get to know her before judging her."

Galinda stared at him. "So that's it? You're ending it?"

"Yes," Fiyero said simply.

"Fine. Well, that's just _fine," _she snapped and stormed away.

Of course, the news that Fiyero Tiggular had broken up with Galinda Upland was the biggest thing that had happened on campus since Fiyero's arrival just shy of two months ago. Galinda and her friends had taken it upon themselves to spread the news, which naturally presented the view that Fiyero had unceremoniously dumped the blonde. Girls seemed torn between wanting to hate Fiyero for daring to dump the beautiful, popular blonde; and finding ways to gain his attention to end his single status.

There had actually been whispered debates in classrooms, corridors and the cafeteria as to just how soon was too soon to try and make a move on Fiyero without incurring Galinda's wrath.

Elphaba was oblivious to all of this. As the holidays neared closer, she was taking any shifts she could get. She was working every free moment she had, which left her drained and exhausted. Not just as a reason for more money, but as a way to get out of the crapartment as much as possible. Elphaba had been dismayed to discover as December set in, that her building lacked one important facility she hadn't thought of when she'd signed the lease- heat.

She'd been forced to dip into her precious savings to stock up on blankets and hot water bottles, but it wasn't enough to battle against the cold winds that whistled through the floorboards and formed ice on her windows and bathroom mirror every morning.

Elphaba was reluctant to touch her savings too much, because Idonea and Alun had already informed her they were closing both the restaurant and the _OzDust _for the three weeks of winter break.

"With all our staff and customers going home for the holidays, it doesn't seem much point," Idonea had told her apologetically.

"But… you were open in the summer," Elphaba had protested, caught unaware.

"Only _Identity,"_ Alun pointed out. "And we were only just starting to pick up business when we hired you."

"It's a college town, we have seasonal lulls. And it would be impractical and a waste of money to open for so few people," Idonea shrugged.

So, Elphaba was looking at three weeks without work or pay; and unfortunately for the timing of those three weeks, she would also be expected to pay her rent and electricity bills- not even mentioning the long list of books she was expected to buy for next semester.

It was a little cause for panic, but Elphaba was trying to remain calm. Of course, remaining calm, was another story. Between stress over mid-terms and now her money worries, she'd even begun losing weight- which she didn't really need to do. She'd spent hours going over her budget and finances and had worked out that if she ate lunch either at the Shiz cafeteria or managed to grab some leftovers from _Identity, _she could save money on food. Shiz, at least, was remaining open for the holidays- for those students who chose not to return home for Lurlinemas. And the money usually reserved for food would just allow her to scrape through with her bills and rent. She would have to start now- even before the end of semester, or she would fall short, but Elphaba was determined to get by.

And really, what other choice did she have?

There was only two weeks until the end of semester, and Elphaba was dreading it. At least classes and mid-terms were keeping her busy and distracted, and she thought she may even be becoming friends with Nessarose and Boq. She'd eaten lunch with them a few times now, and had even been invited for coffee at the _Wilted Rose _once or twice. Boq still seemed intimidated by Elphaba at times, but was slowly beginning to relax in her presence.

And then there was Fiyero… she couldn't help but notice that since they'd completed their assignment, he no longer ignored her in the halls or when he saw her around campus. He never went out of his way to sit with her or to make conversation, but if they passed within earshot of one another and made eye contact, he would usually flash her a smile and a "Hey, Fae."

It had thrown Elphaba in the beginning- quite frankly, it still did a bit. She wasn't quite sure how to react, and it happened so fast he was long gone before she could even open her mouth to say "hello" in return. And of course, as he was so often with Cailean and Fyonn, they often chimed in with their own greetings.

"Good morrow, fair Lady of Emeralds," was Fyonn's favourite greeting.

"How's it going, Little Orphan Elphie?" Cailean would grin.

Elphaba at first would roll her eyes, but after a while, they began to make her smile. They weren't said with malice or mocking, merely teasing.

If she wasn't careful, Elphaba laughed to herself, she might actually end up with friends. And then where would she be?

**AN. Cailean and Fyonn came about after I decided that Fiyero was like Logan from _Gilmore Girls. _So, Cailean and Fyonn= Colin and Finn, see what I did there (Well, people who have seen _Gilmore Girls _will)? I kind of love them too.**

**And Little Orphan Elphie= Little Orphan Annie? (I just saw _Annie_, haha). **


	10. Chapter 10

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. Originally, this was going to be a big cliff hanger but once I wrote it, I realised it wasn't. It's just a catalyst for the rest of the story (I love that word, by the way. I don't know why). **

**Ten**

Elphaba sighed wearily as she studied her reflection in the staff bathroom mirror of _Identity. _She had just finished a six hour opening shift, and was just freshening up before running off to Shiz for her afternoon classes.

Elphaba didn't like Tuesdays, even if it did give her the opportunity to get a morning shift before classes. She much preferred to have her classes in the mornings, when her brain was at its freshest.

But Elphaba wasn't really in the mood to work this morning, or even to go to class. She suspected she might be coming down with a cold or the flu. She had been exhausted for days, and it taken her twenty minutes to find the energy to get out of bed that morning. She'd felt dizzy her whole shift, and wasn't feeling much better now. Elphaba was pretty sure it was just a sign she needed to eat something, but she would have no time before her class began.

Tiredly, she untied her apron and took it off. She had a headache, and so she untied the bun her hair was in, hoping to relieve some pressure on her scalp. Running a hand through her hair, she lightly massaged her head.

"You off to class?" Ankita asked, coming into the bathroom.

Elphaba nodded. "Yeah. I was just wondering whether I'd have time to change before I go, but I don't think so."

Ankita did a small double take on her way to a cubicle and frowned at Elphaba. "Have you lost weight?"

"Just a little. Mid-term stress, I think," Elphaba shrugged.

It was more than a little, as best as she could figure, she'd lost about ten pounds in the past few weeks. But she figured it was nothing, she _had _been busy lately and mid-terms had taken a lot out of her.

"Bye," she said to Ankita, and left the bathroom.

Elphaba hurried to the campus as fast as she could, mindful of the time, and made it to the classroom with mere minutes to spare. Feeling dizzy again, she sank into the first available seat near the door, and took deep breaths.

"Hey, Fae," Fiyero greeted her as he walked into the room and past her seat.

Elphaba was surprised he was in class, but didn't have time to question it before he was out of earshot.

"Hey, Fae," mimicked Cailean as he followed Fiyero.

"Lady Fae," Fyonn tipped an imaginary hat at her as he passed.

Elphaba rolled her eyes, and said nothing. She focused her energy on organising her notebook and pen so that she was ready for when Dr Dillamond arrived and began the lecture.

With just over a minute to go, Galinda and her friends entered the room and headed to the seats where they usually sat. Elphaba happened to catch Galinda's eye as the blonde walked past, and the blonde regarded her coldly before walking off. Elphaba had never been more sick of Galinda's attitude than she had been in the past few weeks. She was tired of her condescending "I'm better than everyone" mind-set, and the way she looked at Elphaba as though she were dirt.

But since Galinda and Fiyero had broken up, Elphaba had to admit something had changed. Galinda seemed to have a new strategy- a mixture of ignoring Elphaba, and glaring at her furiously as though Elphaba was to blame for Fiyero ending their relationship. Elphaba's only clue as to why this could be was the thought that perhaps Galinda had had an issue with Elphaba and Fiyero doing an assignment together, but Elphaba still wasn't sure how that made the end of their relationship her fault.

Elphaba usually enjoyed history, but the day's lecture dragged by. Elphaba could think of nothing else except going back to the crapartment and having a nap, she had absolutely no energy.

"Hey, Elphaba? Do you want to get a coffee?" Nessarose called out to her, wheeling up to her as students began filing out the door and Elphaba was packing her things away.

"Not today, thanks. I've got things to do," Elphaba explained.

Boq smiled. "No problem. See you later."

"Bye."

Elphaba stood up from her seat, and closed her eyes briefly as a wave of vertigo hit her once more. She slung her bag over her shoulder and headed out the door, intending to head home. As she walked down the hall, she passed Galinda and her friends. And once again, the blonde was staring daggers at Elphaba. And this time, Elphaba snapped.

"_What _is your problem?" she snapped, striding up to her.

Galinda appeared genuinely taken aback. "Excuse me?"

"I get it, you hate me," Elphaba said hotly. "You're better than me, prettier, more popular, whatever. I'm over it. But I'm not here to torture you, or to make your life miserable. I'm just here. So, whatever your issue is, deal with it."

Galinda stared at her for a moment, then narrowed her eyes. "No, you're here to make everyone's lives miserable, aren't you?"

Then she swept away, followed by Pfannee, Shen-Shen and Milla.

"Can you believe the _nerve _of her?" Pfannee exclaimed as they headed down the stairs.

"Just attacking you in _public _like that!" Shen-Shen added.

Galinda nodded in agreement, although her mind was elsewhere. Abruptly, there was a large thud from behind them and several people gasped. Galinda turned to see what the fuss was about, and jumped aside with an involuntary shriek as a green and black blur passed her.

With her heart beating wildly in her chest, Galinda held a hand up to her throat as her brain caught up with what her eyes were seeing. Elphaba was lying unconscious at the foot of the stairs, with blood oozing down her face.

"Oh my Oz!" Milla whispered, sounding as shaken as Galinda felt.

It had all happened so fast, Galinda could only stand there as the Munchkin boy- what was his name? Bick? _Boq, _rushed over from where he had been standing with Nessarose.

"Elphaba?" he asked worriedly, kneeling down next to her.

"What happened?" Milla asked a boy standing nearby.

"She was coming down the stairs and then she just… fell," he shrugged.

"You mean she tripped?" Pfannee sniggered.

"No, she fell," another girl chimed in. "I think she fainted."

Nessarose suddenly appeared next to Elphaba's prone figure, with Dr Behn.

"This is boring," Shen-Shen announced. "Can we go?"

It took Galinda a moment to tear her eyes away from the scene before them. "Sure, let's go to my room," she suggested.

As the girls headed towards Galinda's dorm room, they didn't give Elphaba a second thought. Well, some of them didn't.

* * *

For all those people who didn't like Elphaba, the news of her collapse spread hastily across campus. But it was still an hour before the news reached Fiyero, who had escaped the buildings as soon as Dr Dillamond dismissed them and hurried with Cailean and Fyonn to the _Wilted Rose _for coffee, so that Fyonn could chat up the cute barista who was due to start her shift at the same time as class ended.

As they sat there drinking their coffees, and watching Fyonn make a fool of himself trying to gain the barista girl's attention, a group of students entered, all chattering excitedly about something.

"What's the goss?" Cailean called out to them, and Fiyero shook his head hopelessly.

Honestly, Cailean was worse than half of the girls on campus when it came to gossip. He knew all the latest gossip and rumours- those that he hadn't started himself, of course.

"The green girl collapsed," a girl answered Cailean's question, and Fiyero's smile faded.

Elphaba had collapsed? For there was only one green girl, there was no one else it could be.

"What happened? Where is she?" he asked, leaning over too.

The girl shrugged. "I don't know. Dr Benh got an ambulance; I guess she's at the hospital."

"When was this?" Cailean demanded, outraged he had missed the scene.

"About an hour ago."

"Damn Fyonn," Cailean pouted. "If we didn't have to rush over here after class, we would have seen it!"

"Yeah, that's the awful part," Fiyero agreed sarcastically. Then he stood up. "I'm going to go to the hospital. See what I can find out."

"Good idea," Cailean agreed. "Let me know what happens, will you?"

Fiyero rolled his eyes and left the cafe.

Fiyero could admit he was worried about Elphaba. What could have happened to cause her to collapse? But it was only when he was nearly at the hospital he realised a problem- the hospital would not give out any information to non-family members. And Elphaba was an orphan. His best hope was that a teacher was with her, who would be able to tell him something.

But he was surprised as he headed towards the room number the nurse in the lobby had given him, and saw Nessarose and Boq in the waiting room.

"Fiyero?" Nessarose frowned when she saw him approaching, looking surprised.

Fiyero couldn't blame her, but chose to ignore it. "Hi. How's Elphaba? What happened?"

Boq and Nessa exchanged a glance before Boq answered. "She fainted. She fell down the stairs and cut her head. The doctor stitched it up, six stitches but he says it's along her hairline so the scar won't be too visible."

"But why did she faint?" Fiyero pressed.

Nessarose looked saddened as she replied. "The doctor said she was showing early signs of malnutrition and possible pneumonia. They're wondering if she has an eating disorder."

Fiyero was stunned for a moment. Then, abruptly, he recalled what Elphaba had said that day in her apartment. _"Call me crazy but if there's a choice about paying my bills and decorating the place, I'm going to go with the bills." _His heart sank as he wondered just how often Elphaba had had to make the same decision between bills and food.

"She doesn't have an eating disorder," he said quietly. "She's broke."

Nessa looked horrified. "What? But... she works... so much."

"Yeah, and how well do you think being a waitress pays?" Fiyero retorted. "It's what? Minimum wage and tips? And that has to cover her rent, bills, living expenses, school stuff _and _food?"

There was silence for a moment. "Why wouldn't she say anything?" Boq wondered aloud.

"Why would she?" Fiyero pointed out.

Then he thought of something else. "Wait, how did you find all this out? Is there a teacher here?"

Nessa blushed. "No, I... I said Elphaba was my sister. We didn't think they'd tell anything to a non-family member."

"And we figured it was more likely Nessa was a relative than I was," Boq chimed in.

"And they believed you?" Fiyero asked, impressed.

"At first I think they weren't sure, but only because I'm... I'm not green," Nessarose admitted. "But I convinced them."

"So, is she awake?" Fiyero questioned, but Nessarose shook her head.

"No, she's sleeping. Should I tell the doctors? That she doesn't have an eating disorder?"

Fiyero hesitated, and then shook his head. "I don't know. It might raise more questions about why she's suffering, but you're not. If you're supposedly sisters and all."

Boq agreed with Fiyero. "Plus, all they're doing is getting nutrients and food into her now."

"They want her to talk to a psychologist," Nessarose reminded him.

The Munchkin shrugged. "That might do Elphaba some good. To have someone to talk to. It can't hurt anyway."

"Although you might want to fill Elphaba in on the 'sister' thing before then," Fiyero chimed in helpfully.

"Oh yeah... I guess that would help," Boq agreed.

"Are you guys sticking around?"

"I am," Nessarose replied. "Boq has a class in an hour."

"I thought I'd stop in at _Identity _on my way back, and let them know what's going on," Boq added.

"Would you let Elphaba know I came to see her? Tell her I'll come by tomorrow," Fiyero asked.

Nessa nodded. "Sure. I was going to ask her if she'd like me to get some things for her. Although I'm not sure where she lives..."

"I know!" Fiyero offered. "I could get some stuff, and bring it with me tomorrow?"

"That'd be great," Nessarose said gratefully. "I'll get you her key, it's in her bag."

Nessa wheeled herself away and Boq turned to Fiyero.

"So, why are you here? I didn't know you and Elphaba were friends."

"I didn't know _you _and Elphaba were friends," Fiyero retorted, deflecting the question.

"We've hung out a few times," Boq shrugged. "Nessa and I figured we were as close to friends as Elphaba had. And we were worried. The way she fell... it was scary," he admitted.

Fiyero and Boq left together, and Fiyero decided to go with Boq to _Identity._

"Why?" he asked suspiciously.

"Their cheesecake is really good," Fiyero deadpanned in reply.

Boq gave a half-shrug. Their cheesecake _was _really good.

"Hi, can we speak to the manager, please?" Boq asked the first waitress he saw as they entered.

"And I'll have a piece of cheesecake, please," Fiyero grinned at her charmingly.

Boq shot him an exasperated look, but then added in a low voice, "Make that two, please."

"Sure," the waitress nodded, and hurried away.

It wasn't long before a man came out and introduced himself as the manager.

"Can I help you gentlemen?"

Fiyero answered before Boq could. "We're friends with Elphaba. There was an incident at Shiz today, she fainted."

Alun looked concerned. "Is she alright?"

"She's in the hospital, at least overnight," Boq replied. "We thought we should come tell you in case she was supposed to work tomorrow."

"I don't understand, she worked this morning and she seemed fine," Alun frowned.

Boq and Fiyero exchanged a look, unsure how to answer. "We're not really sure," Fiyero lied eventually.

They had discussed it briefly on the way, and debated whether to tell them the real reason. Fiyero didn't think Elphaba would be too keen about them knowing the truth.

"I appreciate you coming to let us know," Alun said as he left.

"No worries," Boq said politely.

As Alun excused himself and left, he looked at Fiyero. "I'm going back to the hospital afterwards to see Elphaba and get Nessa. You don't want to come?"

Fiyero did, but he shook his head. "No, thanks. I'll let her rest; we don't want to crowd her with too many visitors. I'll just see her tomorrow."

Boq agreed. But they never imagined who would go visit Elphaba that night.


	11. Chapter 11

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. I'm glad everyone responded well to Elphaba's situation! **

**And yes, Elphaba's "visitor" isn't really that much of a mystery, is it? But I hope you enjoy it! I'm not really happy with the first half of this chapter, but nonetheless...**

**Eleven **

Elphaba lay in her bed in her hospital room, staring at the ceiling. She had so many thoughts running through her head, it was hard to separate them from one another.

Nessarose and Boq had just left, promising to come back tomorrow morning. Elphaba had been so surprised when Nessa admitted she had told the doctor that she was her sister in order to find out information about Elphaba's condition, she had been unable to speak.

"But… why?" she'd finally asked.

Nessa simply smiled sweetly. "Because we're friends. We were worried about you."

They had also told her that Fiyero had come to see her, and would likewise return the next day. Nessa had been a little apprehensive about confessing she had given Fiyero the key to her apartment to bring some clean clothes and things with him tomorrow, but Elphaba hadn't minded. Fiyero had already seen the crapartment, and for reasons unknown, Elphaba trusted him.

Elphaba felt horrendibly embarrassed about what had happened that day. Early signs of malnutrition, the doctor had told her. The possible pneumonia was no real surprise, given her lack of heat in the crapartment, but the malnutrition… she thought she had been so careful. Yes, she was eating little, but she had made sure that she was eating as much meat and vegetables as possible in order to get the proper nutrients. And now they wanted her to talk to a psychologist about her possibly having an eating disorder.

Elphaba had tried to protest she didn't need to talk to a psychologist, after all, it wasn't really by choice that she wasn't eating; it was a money thing- or lack thereof. But the doctor had been firm and given her no choice. And now, Elphaba had another thing to worry about- how in Oz's name she was going to pay the hospital bills. Strangely, the one thought she kept mulling over was how odd it felt to be sleeping in a bed again, after three months of sleeping on only a thin mattress on the floor.

There was a faint knock on the door, and Elphaba's gaze slid from the ceiling to the doorway to see who was there, and she wondered for a moment if she was hallucinating.

It was Galinda Upland.

"What are you doing here?" she asked incredulously, raising the head of the bed so she was in a sitting position.

Galinda cleared her throat uncomfortably and stepped into the room.

"I came to see how you were."

Elphaba only stared. "Why? You hate me."

"I-" Galinda opened her mouth to defend herself, but then stopped.

"How are you?"

"Fine," Elphaba replied slowly, wondering if this was a joke and someone was about to throw pig's blood on her or something.

An incredibly awkward silence fell between the two girls. Elphaba wasn't sure what to say, and Galinda knew what she needed to say, but was having trouble mustering up the courage to do so. But as the silence weighed heavier upon them, she caved.

"I'm sorry!" she blurted out.

Elphaba was stunned. She had never expected those words to come out of the blonde's mouth.

"Sorry? For what?"

Galinda looked down at her shoes. "I- I felt… after you fell, there were rumours that you'd… died."

Elphaba's eyes widened. "I _died?"_

Galinda nodded. "I guess it makes sense. You kind of looked dead… lying there on the ground. And… it all happened really fast. But I got thinking that if you were dead… I was horrendible to you. And I'm sorry."

"Oh. Thank you?" Elphaba said unsurely.

"I've been realising lately that I never really got to know you," Galinda admitted, which Elphaba knew was a big deal for her to admit.

"You're just… different. And where I'm from… everyone's pretty much the same. We get brought up _not _to be too different from anyone else."

"I guess… I owe you an apology too," Elphaba admitted, figuring if Galinda could admit she was wrong, so could she. "It's just… I've never had anything. I've had to work for everything I've ever had or wanted. Getting into Shiz, leaving the orphanage… staying at Shiz. And you've never had to work for anything, every thing's been handed to you. And it's like you don't even appreciate it. That bugs me."

Galinda had never thought of it quite like that. "Oh."

"Back in the Emerald City, I knew I was different," Elphaba continued. "But no one stared. Not like they do here. And I was _so _excited to come here. Then I get treated like a freak, and everyone thinks they're better than me because I'm on a scholarship? Because I'm working as a waitress?"

Galinda hadn't thought it was possible to feel worse, but was being proved wrong.

"Can we start over?" she suggested.

Elphaba paused. "You want to be friends?"

Galinda hesitated. "I think we could both stand to be more friendly to one another and to get to know each other."

Elphaba considered that for a moment. "OK. What do you want to know?"

Galinda sighed thoughtfully, then stepped forward and gingerly sat down in the chair next to Elphaba's bed.

"Well, what was it like? Growing up in the Emerald City?"

The two girls talked for about an hour. Elphaba, about growing up in the Emerald City and the other kids at the orphanage; and Galinda, about growing up as a young lady in Gilikin society. Elphaba was wary about revealing anything too personal just yet, in case this backfired, but she did tell a few stories that had happened when potential adoptive parents had come to the orphanage and met her.

When Galinda left, Elphaba couldn't help but shake her head slightly. This had been an incredibly long, surreal day. But she was hopeful now that with the rivalry settled somewhat between her and Galinda, her second semester would be a lot more peaceful than her first.

* * *

The next day, Fiyero was leaving campus on his way to stop by Elphaba's apartment and then go to the hospital; when he heard a voice call out to him.

"Fiyero!"

He turned, and was surprised to see Galinda approaching him. She hadn't spoken to him since he'd broken up with her.

"Hi," he greeted her cautiously. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going back to the hospital to visit Elphaba," she explained and Fiyero did a double take.

"Going _back _to the hospital? You went to visit Elphaba?"

Galinda nodded. "Last night. We talked for a while. We agreed to be friendly to one another."

A broad grin spread slowly over Fiyero's face. "Is that so? Is the world ending?"

She rolled her eyes. "Shut up. I was there yesterday… when she fell. And it was scary, I felt bad that if she'd died, I would have been so horrendible to her."

Fiyero paused. "This isn't going to be like one of those stories where you become friends with her and then throw her out a window to her death, is it?"

Galinda glared at him, then promptly changed the subject.

"Where are you going? You're not usually up before lunch on a Saturday?"

"I'm going to the hospital," Fiyero confirmed her suspicions. "Right after I stop by Elphaba's place and get some things for her."

"Oh. That's nice," Galinda said in surprise.

Then Fiyero had an idea. "Why don't you come with me?" he suggested. "I'm sure Elphaba would be far more comfortable with _you _digging through her underwear drawer than me."

"So would all girls in Oz," Galinda retorted dryly, but agreed.

Fiyero watched Galinda's face become more and more horrified the closer they came to Elphaba's apartment, and by the time they were inside, her expression was enough to make Fiyero long for a camera. Then he had to stop and think about what his own face must have been like when he'd seen the apartment, although he'd been trying so hard to keep his face neutral.

"This is _it? _She lives here?" Galinda demanded.

Fiyero was more interested in proving one of his own theories. He strode to the cupboards and opened them, checking for food. There was nothing but a few tins of soup and a few pieces of stale bread.

Galinda shuddered, whether from cold or disgust, she didn't know. "It's freezing in here. Where's the heat?"

Fiyero looked around and his heart sank further. "I can't see any. Do you?"

The blonde girl shook her head. "No. Just a huge pile of blankets."

"No wonder she's sick," Fiyero muttered.

Galinda was now past looking horrified, and looked simply sad.

"How can anyone live like this?"

"Galinda, to us, this is awful. But to Fae? This is probably more than she's ever had," Fiyero reminded her gently. "A place of her own? Independence?"

She was quiet for a moment, then spoke in a quiet voice. "I didn't ask her why she'd fainted. I wasn't sure if I wanted to hear the answer. But you know, don't you?"

Fiyero let out a long breath. "Early signs of malnutrition. And possible pneumonia."

Galinda's eyes widened. "Malnutrition? I thought only poor people got that?"

"She is poor," Fiyero pointed out. "She's a waitress and has to pay rent, bills… I'm guessing her top priority is making sure she has a place to sleep at night."

Galinda ranted all the way to the hospital about the inconsiderateness of the university to award scholarships and not include housing, but as soon as they reached Elphaba's room, she dropped the subject.

"Here's some clothes and stuff," Fiyero greeted her, dropping the bag at the end of the bed.

"Thank you," Elphaba thanked him quietly.

"So, any idea when you're getting out of here?"

Elphaba sighed. "A few days. They want to make sure I'm putting on weight and that I don't actually have pneumonia."

"Do _you _think you have pneumonia?" Galinda asked, sitting down.

Elphaba shook her head. "No. I think I'm getting a bitch of a cold, but I don't think it's pneumonia. But then again, I didn't pick up the malnutrition thing either."

She spoke without thinking and then regretted the words. But as she looked apprehensively up at her visitors, she saw in their eyes that they already knew the diagnosis.

"It was pretty clever of Nessarose to say she was your sister," Galinda smoothly changed the subject.

"Thank you, Galinda," came Nessa's voice and they looked over to see Nessa and Boq enter the room.

The five of them sat around talking for a while, until a nurse came to collect Elphaba for her appointment with the psychologist.

"We should all go out to dinner when you get out of hospital, Fae," Fiyero suggested. "Do you get an employee's discount at _Identity?"_

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Ten per cent," she answered reluctantly.

"Sounds like a good idea," Boq agreed and Nessa and Galinda nodded.

"Great. It'll be my treat," Fiyero added, before Elphaba could protest.

"Fine," she sighed and waved goodbye as they left.

"What are you friends going to think?" Nessa asked Galinda as they left the room too.

Galinda hesitated for a moment, then lifted her chin defiantly. "Who cares?"

She saw Fiyero smile proudly at her, which she returned. But Galinda wasn't finished yet- she was forming a plan.


	12. Chapter 12

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. Allow me to assure you all that Fiyeraba is coming, as is Melena (The Fiyeraba comes before Melena though). Thank you to all for being patient with me- have you guys ever known me to rush anything? (Wait, don't answer that).**

**I assure you Fiyeraba is VERY close *cough*chapter 14*cough***

**And to anonymous and GoodWitchesOfOz, the Galinda thing is explained a bit more... in the next chapter.**

**This (Slightly early) update is for Holly!**

**There's also a line in this chapter that I LOVE. Can anyone guess?**

**Twelve**

It took Galinda a few days to arrange everything, but she worked fast and got results, and by the time Elphaba was getting released from hospital, everything was in place. Elphaba was more than ready to get out of the hospital, if only just for money reasons. The hospital bills had taken their toll on her savings, and she was dreading what would happen when it came time to pay her rent and utilities.

But she hadn't counted on Galinda.

"You're moving," she announced to Elphaba, bouncing into her hospital room.

Elphaba paused from where she was packing her few things into the bag. "Excuse me?"

"You're moving," Galinda repeated, sitting down on the bed and tossing her blonde curls over her shoulder.

"Out of that disgusting apartment. You cann_ot _live there anymore, Elphie."

That was another new thing born of recent days, Galinda had adopted Elphie, as a nickname, for reasons Elphaba could only imagine.

"And where am I supposed to live exactly?" Elphaba asked tiredly.

"With me, of course!" Galinda beamed at her as Elphaba's eyes widened.

"It's all arranged. I wrote to my Popsicle and told him _all _about you, and I said I wanted you to move into my private suite with me and he agreed. And then I arranged it with Horrible Morrible. _Then, _I spoke to your landlord and got you out of your lease early! So, all you have to do is get your things out of the apartment and over to my suite!"

Elphaba wasn't sure what to say, she was truly flattered by Galinda's concern for her living arrangements.

"Galinda… you really don't have to do that," she warned.

"I know! That's what makes me so nice!" Galinda smiled.

Elphaba was half-wondering if this was a joke. "Why?"

"I want to do something nice," Galinda admitted. "That's all. There's no ulterior motive here, I just thought... considering we agreed to try and get along, and that this was a start."

In truth, maybe Galinda was overcompensating a little out of guilt, but when still felt the urge to shower every time she pictured where Elphaba had been living, she didn't see any other option.

Elphaba hesitated, then decided to swallow her pride. "Alright. Thank you. Are you sure you don't mind-?"

Galinda cut her off firmly. "Elphie. I _saw _that place. And I can't believe you spent even a night there, let alone three months. I don't mind. Truthfully, I have _so _much space, I don't know what to do with it," she admitted. "There's only so much pink you can fill a room with."

Elphaba laughed. "So, if you saw the crapartment-"

Galinda frowned. "The _what?"_

"The crapartment. It's my little nickname for it. I know it wasn't great, but it was still my home," Elphaba shrugged shyly.

Galinda clapped her hands. "The crapartment! That's cute! I don't have a cute name for my room, you'll have to think of one for us."

Elphaba wasn't sure if she was being serious or not, so she only smiled slightly.

"Sorry, what were you saying?" Galinda pressed.

Elphaba shrugged. "Well, if you saw the crapartment, you would have seen all my books…"

Galinda nodded. "Don't worry. We have bookshelves in the room, but I've never used them. And I've already made Boq and Fiyero move things around so there's room for your piano."

That surprised Elphaba more than anything. "My piano?"

Galinda nodded. "Yes. You do play, don't you? Fiyero said you were using it as a plant holder, but I think he was joking… even though I didn't really get it," she frowned and Elphaba stifled a laugh.

"Yes, I play."

"Wonderful. I had lessons as a child, but I wasn't very good. I ride horseback though. Do you?"

"There weren't many horses in the orphanage," Elphaba reminded her gently and Galinda giggled awkwardly.

"Oh, right. Well, are you ready? Are you sure you'll be up to dinner tonight?"

Elphaba smiled slightly. "I'll be fine. No pneumonia, remember? Just a cold."

Galinda took her arm. "Well, let's _go_ then! Fiyero, Fyonn, Cailean and Boq are going to help us move everything over this afternoon."

Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "Really? That soon?"

Galinda shrugged. "Why not? I want you to be settled before I leave for holidays."

"In a week and a half? I'm sure that's more than enough time. I don't have that much stuff," Elphaba pointed out, but Galinda ignored her.

Elphaba was right, it didn't take them long to move everything from the crapartment to Galinda's private suite at Shiz. The thing that took the longest time was the books and the piano, but finally, everything was done.

"I like the piano," Galinda announced, studying it from across the room, when Fyonn and Cailean had left and it was just the five of them. "It adds character to the place."

Elphaba rolled her eyes and said nothing as she continued to unpack books and stack them on the bookshelves.

"I think your new roommate should give us a musical demonstration," Fiyero grinned.

Said new roommate snorted derisively. "Um, no."

"Oh, please, Elphie?" Galinda begged. "It would be so much fun."

Elphaba hesitated. "I don't know what I'd play…"

"What about that sheet music I saw that one time?" Fiyero suggested.

She glared at him. "The ones I said were _private?"_

Fiyero wasn't fazed. "Yep. Those ones."

Nessa looked impressed. "Do you write songs, Elphaba?"

"Just one song, and I didn't really write it. I don't think so anyway," Elphaba admitted. "It's just this melody I always had stuck in my head."

Boq made a face. "Ugh, I _hate _when you get a song stuck in your head."

Elphaba nodded. "Yes, except this isn't a real song. I've never heard it before. But it was always in my head, until I got it down on paper."

"And the words too?" Fiyero asked in interest.

Elphaba shrugged. "I just woke up one morning after a dream and they were there."

"Wow," Galinda's eyes were wide.

"I've always called it a lullaby, but it's not really," Elphaba confessed. "It just… it _feels _like a lullaby, if that makes any sense."

"Well, play it for us?" Boq suggested. "We'll know more when we hear it. I can't read sheet music."

"Me either," Nessa added.

"I have a cold!" Elphaba protested. "My nose is all blocked up, it won't sound any good."

"So we promise not to throw rocks at you," Fiyero assured her, and she glared at him.

"Please, Elphie?" Galinda asked.

Elphaba hesitated, then took a deep breath. "Ok," she agreed tentatively.

She found the sheet music, sat down at the piano and cleared her throat, trying to focus on the music before her and not everyone's eyes boring into the back of her head.

Her main concern was what would happen if she needed to sneeze during the song, but she pushed those thoughts away and concentrated.

"_May the angels protect you,_

_Trouble neglect you,_

_And heaven accept you when it's time to go home._

_May you always have plenty,_

_The glass never empty,_

_Know in your belly,_

_You're never alone. _

_May your tears come from laughing,_

_You find friends worth having,_

_With every year passing _

_They mean more than gold._

_May you win but stay humble, _

_Smile more than grumble,_

_And know when you stumble _

_You're never alone._

_Never alone, Never alone, _

_I'll be in every beat of your heart _

_When you face the unknown. _

_Wherever you fly,_

_This isn't goodbye, _

_My love will follow you, stay with you _

_Baby you're never alone. _

_Well, I have to be honest _

_As much as I want it,_

_I'm not gonna promise that the cold winds won't blow._

_So when hard times have found you,_

_And your fears surround you,_

_Wrap my love around you _

_You're never alone._

_Never alone, Never alone _

_I'll be in every beat of your heart _

_When you face the unknown._

_Wherever you fly _

_This isn't goodbye _

_My love will follow you, stay with you _

_Baby you're never alone._

_May the angels protect you,_

_Trouble neglect you,_

_And heaven accept you when it's time to go home. _

_And when hard times have found you _

_And your fears surround you, _

_Wrap my love around you _

_You're never alone_

_Never alone, Never alone,_

_I'll be in every beat of your heart _

_When you face the unknown. _

_Wherever you fly _

_This isn't goodbye _

_My love will follow you stay with you _

_Baby you're never alone_

_My love will follow you stay with you _

_Baby you're never alone."_

Although the piano was old and not entirely in tune, Elphaba made it sound like magic. As she sang the last note and the room faded into silence, not one of her audience dared break the spell that had fallen over the room.

"Wow," Boq said finally.

"Yeah… imagine how good it would be without the blocked nose," Fiyero agreed and once again, Elphaba glared at him.

Of course the effect of the glare was ruined when she sneezed three times in a row, and Nessa smiled sympathetically as she handed her a tissue.

"Thanks," Elphaba said quietly, accepting the box and blowing her nose.

"It's a really lovely song, Elphaba. The tune sounds somewhat familiar…" Nessa trailed off.

Elphaba looked at her in interest. "Really? Like you've heard it before?"

Nessa hesitated, and then shrugged. "Maybe. I could be wrong though. But it was lovely."

"How old were you when you wrote it, Elphie?" Galinda asked.

Elphaba paused in thought. "About eleven, for the music. I didn't write the words until… I think I was thirteen or fourteen."

"I don't know how you can do it," Fiyero admitted. "I can't even write an essay, let alone a song."

Elphaba blushed under his praise. "Like I said, it just came to me," she tried to explain.

There was a moment of silence until Galinda clapped her hands. "OK, we should start getting ready for dinner. What time are we meeting?"

And just like that, plans were made. It felt strange to Elphaba what was happening- she was going to dinner with Galinda Upland and Fiyero Tiggular of all people. Of course, she'd hung out with Nessarose and Boq a few times before; but she'd never imagined hanging around Galinda or Fiyero.

It felt like only yesterday Elphaba had been laughing to herself about making friends, and now it seemed like it was coming true. It just proved, she thought to herself, life was full of surprises.

**AN. The song is called "Never Alone" by Lady Antebellum and Jim Brickman. You can Google it or just check my blog!**

**And has anyone else noticed that the site doesn't count anonymous reviews in the tally anymore? I noticed this when I was looking at reviews for a story that said there were 2, but when I looked there were actually 5- but 3 were anonymous. Have they always done that, or is this new? I don't like it.**


	13. Chapter 13

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. No one guessed my favourite line from the last chapter, which made me giggle, although I LOVED reading all YOUR favourite lines. Mine was actually this one from Galinda: "Yes. You do play, don't you? Fiyero said you were using it as a plant holder, but I think he was joking… even though I didn't really get it,"**

**If you don't understand why, I recommend re-reading chapter 8 :P**

**Thirteen**

Fiyero was happy to go home for Lurlinemas, although he was actually sorry to leave Shiz just when they were forming such a strong social group.

There were no words to say how proud Fiyero was of his ex-girlfriend. When she had first come to him and told him her plan to share her private suite with Elphaba, to save her both having to live in a horrendible apartment with no heat and save some money in the process, he had been both stunned and pleased.

"Why would you do that? Until three days ago, you hated Elphaba. And now you're going to _live _with her?"

Galinda had hesitated briefly. "Look, Fiyero… I know I was mad… _really _mad when you broke up with me; but the fact is… you had a point. I was being awful to a girl I didn't even know, because she was different. And, I got to know Elphie a little when I saw her in the hospital, and between that and how she was living… I'm not saying we're going to be best friends, but I wanted to do something nice. To make up for it."

And Fiyero hadn't known what to say in response.

And it seemed to be going well so far. The two girls were getting along well in their new living arrangements. Of course, there'd been a few minor squabbles, but overall, it was going well. Of course, when the news got out, it was all over campus.

For perhaps the first time ever, people were staring at and whispering about Galinda for reasons other than envying her wardrobe or her love life. They'd heard all sorts of things, from blackmail, to spells, to even a rumour that Elphaba and Galinda were lovers- which Fiyero was pretty sure had been started by Cailean.

But the five of them had somehow formed their own social group, even if Elphaba was often reluctant to come out with them.

Elphaba was back at work, but after admitting the situation to Idonea and Alun about her former living arrangements and finances, was working fewer hours. On the last night of semester, Elphaba had entered the OzDust for the first time as a customer and not as an employee.

"Admit it, you only wanted me to come for my employee discount," she teased them.

"Yes," Fyonn nodded.

Fyonn and Cailean sometimes joined them, sometimes not. They liked Elphaba, and of course, were in the circle that Fiyero and Galinda formerly frequented.

Fiyero glared at Fyonn for his answer and he shrugged casually. "What? It's why _I'm_ here!"

In the last week of semester, Fiyero had come to a decision. To act upon his fascination with Elphaba. Yes, that's what he was calling it. Spending so much time with her since she'd been in the hospital, even more than he had when they were doing the assignment together, he'd just become more and more aware of it.

Because she was no longer just the brilliant, beautiful green orphan she had been before; now she was the brilliant beautiful green orphan who sang like an angel and heard songs in her head.

But what it came down to, was that Fiyero had never felt about anyone what he felt for Elphaba. It wasn't _just _that she fascinated him, it was that he looked at the world through different eyes since he'd met her. And the idea of committing to one girl for an extended period of time- possibly forever, didn't sound so totally impossible if that one girl… was green. Fiyero had no clue if she felt anything for him, but figured it was worth at least him asking her out and seeing what happened. At best, she said yes. At worse, she said no and they remained friends.

The big hurdle he knew, would be his parents. He had decided it would be best to give them warnings of his intentions before he actually acted; so that if things did go well between him and Elphaba, they wouldn't be surprised. And they might even come around to the idea of him dating a green orphan with no family, money or connections… yeah, Fiyero didn't really have high hopes for that.

His parents, Bohdan and Lada, weren't snobbish or mean people, they were the King and Queen, and beloved by all their subjects in the Vinkus. But Fiyero, despite all appearances, wasn't stupid. He knew by even mentioning Elphaba to his parents, they would know it was different- because he certainly never mentioned any other girl to them. And as a prince, Fiyero knew he was expected to eventually marry… well, a princess. Or at least a girl with high (read: appropriate) social standing. Elphaba, as an orphan… had pretty much no social standing whatsoever.

They wouldn't have anything _personal _against Elphaba, and should they ever meet, they would be perfectly polite and cordial to her. But his parents would never approve the match for anything more than friendship. And Fiyero was hoping for a lot more than to be Elphaba's friend.

He brought it up his first night home for the holidays, after his parents had praised him for managing not to get expelled or flunk out of Shiz as of yet and they'd discussed their Lurlinemas plans.

He hadn't been sure how to work it into the conversation, but his father had provided him with an excellent opening.

"So, Yero," Bohdan looked at his son from the head of the table. "Have you made many friends at Shiz?"

Fiyero swallowed the mouthful of food he was eating, placing his knife and fork down as he did so.

"Actually, yeah. I've made some really good friends."

Lada raised an eyebrow in interest. "Really? Anyone special?"

"Uh, two guys Cailean Hoisin and Fyonn Rix, Galinda Upland-"

"Of the Upper Uplands?" his father interrupted and Fiyero nodded.

"Yeah, that's her. Uh, Boq Hilder, Nessarose Thropp- the daughter of the former Munchkinland Governor? Oh, and Elphaba Rozek."

His mother frowned. "Rozek… that name sounds familiar… who are her parents?"

_This is it, _Fiyero told himself. "Actually, no one knows."

Bohdan looked confusified. "What do you mean, Fiyero?"

"She's an orphan," Fiyero explained. "She was raised in an orphanage in the Emerald City. No one knows who her parents are."

His parents looked horrified. "That's awful!" Lada exclaimed. "She was never adopted?"

"No. Oh, and she's green," he added as an afterthought, just to see his parents facial expressions.

"She's _green? _What does that mean?" Bohdan spluttered.

"It means her skin is green. Anyway, she's at Shiz on a scholarship. She's really smart, I worked on an assignment with her during the semester and we did really well- mostly due to her, I'm pretty sure."

Fiyero took advantage of his parents stunned silence to press on. "Actually, when we go back to Shiz, I'm going to ask her out. I really like her, and I think you would too."

His parents exchanged a look before his father spoke. "Fiyero, I'm sure she's a lovely girl. But _think _about this. If you were to date this girl, the press would be all over it. They'll dig up every bit of information on her they can find."

"And what will they find?" Fiyero demanded.

"That's exactly the problem," Lada said sharply. "She's some orphan girl from the Emerald City? And _green _at that? This will be news all over the Vinkus, and you're fine with that?"

"She has no title, no social standing," Bohdan chimed in. "Hardly the appropriate status for a princess."

Fiyero rolled his eyes. "Guys, I'm not talking about marrying her, I'm talking about dating her."

"At your age, they may as well be the same thing to the press and you _know _that, Fiyero!" his mother snapped.

His father tried to calm the situation down. "I just don't think this girl is appropriate for you to enter a relationship with, son. What about Miss Upland or even Miss Thropp?"

Lada looked at her husband and grimaced. "Miss Thropp? Really?"

Bohdan shrugged. "If not for her father's death she'd still be the Governor's daughter. And they say she's tragically beautiful."

"She's also crippled," Lada reminded him.

Fiyero felt insulted on Nessarose's behalf. "Mom, Dad, please! Nessarose is a lovely girl, but we're just friends. Galinda and I tried dating, it didn't work out. I want to date _Elphaba, _and I wasn't asking your permission to do so!"

"Fiyero, please listen to reason," Lada begged her son. "I'm sure Elphaba is a very nice girl, we have no objection to that!"

"No, you just object to her lack of parents," Fiyero retorted. "Or is her skin?"

His parents just looked at one another, neither willing to say anything. So, Fiyero simply got up and left the table.

"It doesn't matter what they say," he muttered to himself as he headed up to his room. "I'm going to ask Elphaba out no matter what. She might not even say yes for Oz's sake!... Oz, I hope she says yes."

There was only one more thing he wanted to do before they got back to Shiz and he fulfilled his plan of asking Elphaba out. He and Galinda, and Elphaba and Galinda all seemed to be on good terms at the moment, and Fiyero wanted to keep it that way for as long as possible.

So, when he mailed Galinda's Lurlinemas present to her, at the same time he mailed presents to Nessarose, Boq and Elphaba, he slipped a note in with Galinda's.

"_Hey, Galinda- Happy Lurlinemas!_

_Listen, there was something I wanted to talk to you about before semester ended, but I forgot, so I thought I'd do it now. _

_I'm going to ask Elphaba out after the holidays. I figured, given you're my ex-girlfriend and Elphaba's new roommate, some warning for the situation might be nice._

_Have a good break!_

_Fiyero."_

Galinda's reply didn't come until after the holidays, and the first few pages were filled with her account of all the holiday parties she'd been too since she'd returned home. Finally, she got down to the addressing the subject matter of Fiyero's note.

"_You're going to ask Elphaba out? I admit, I suspected you would sooner or later. Whether you're willing to admit it or not, I was pretty sure you had feelings for her when you broke up with me. I appreciate the warning, Fiyero, thank you."_

Fiyero was surprised by her response. Had he had feelings for Elphaba when he broke up with Galinda?

'_Um, you still have her horoscope, don't you?' _a little voice in his head said pointedly and Fiyero had to admit there was a point there.

He _did _still have that tiny scrap of newspaper with Elphaba's handwriting on it from the first day they met. It was where it had been for months, inside an envelope in his nightstand, brought home to the Vinkus with him from Shiz.

Absent-mindedly, Fiyero walked over and took it out. A small smile crossed his face as he re-read her words for the millionth time. "_You will meet a green waitress today. Do not keep her waiting and tip her well, and she won't spit in your food."_

The more he knew Elphaba, the more it made him smile. Because although she (probably) wouldn't actually _do _that, it was definitely something she wouldn't be afraid to say to his face. It was one of the things he liked most about her.

And he didn't even notice when he put the horoscope in his wallet instead of returning it to the envelope in the nightstand. Or maybe he did, but he wasn't going to speculate about what that meant.

**AN. I do not like Fiyero's parents in this story. For obvious reasons, but they can't be lovely all the time! **


	14. Chapter 14

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. The chapter everyone's been waiting for- Fiyeraba!**

**Fourteen**

Elphaba thoroughly enjoyed her three week break between semesters. She didn't leave Shiz, of course, she had nowhere to go, but she didn't mind that.

With _Identity _closed and no assignments or readings to do, Elphaba was able to fully relax for the first time since… well, in a long time. Galinda's room- _their _room, she had to keep reminding herself, was warm and spacious and that was a blessing Elphaba had never appreciated more in her entire life.

She was simply focused on getting back her health. When she'd first made the move to Galinda's room, she'd written to Kistine to tell her of the change of address. Kistine had been surprised and wanted more details, and Elphaba had ended up confessing everything to her. The reply that came had almost made her cry. The concern that came across and the gentle scolding for not telling her earlier had been completely sincere, and for the first time had made Elphaba long for the orphanage. But she had promised Kistine that she would take care of herself from now on, and she was dedicated to upholding that promise.

She made sure to eat proper meals- not quite three a day, but at least two, and with the pressure and stress of financials worries gone, Elphaba found she was no longer panicking about every dollar she had to spend. She even bought herself some new, warmer clothes to see her through the rest of winter.

They were the first new clothes she'd ever had- in the orphanage, they were given donations from local charities; and when she'd left she had scrounged second hand shops in order to save money. These, whilst still not the latest fashion- Elphaba wasn't willing to spend large sums of money on clothes that would be deemed unfashionable in six months' time anyway, they fit her and weren't faded or shabby.

She'd been lucky that one or two shops had remained open for the townspeople, and had not closed for the Shiz holiday break like many others had. Elphaba hadn't been looking forward to having to clothes shop at the beginning of semester with everyone else.

Elphaba had been pleasantly surprised when she'd received Lurlinemas packages from Galinda, Fiyero, Nessarose and Boq in the mail during vacation. She'd bought them each something small before they'd left, knowing she'd never be able to afford to post them all; but had felt bad that she hadn't been able to spend a lot of money on them.

Nessarose had gotten her a book that Elphaba knew she'd seen her looking at one time in the bookstore, but hadn't been able to afford; Boq had gotten her a very nice pen; Galinda had sent her a basket full of bath salts, facial masks and pampering and relaxation things; and Fiyero- most confusifying, had sent her a small picture frame. It was no larger than a few inches, and Elphaba couldn't imagine what he thought she would be able to use it for- but she appreciated it nonetheless.

There were three days before spring semester was to begin, and students were beginning to trickle back onto campus. Nessarose and Boq arrived together, two days before the beginning of term.

"Did you have a good break?" Elphaba asked Nessa when the three of them had met up at the _Wilted Rose _that night.

Nessa shrugged. "I suppose it was alright. It was nice seeing my mother again, I've never been away from home for so long before now," she explained.

Then she smiled at Elphaba. "You look good, Elphaba. Healthy."

Elphaba smiled slightly, feeling self-conscious. "Thank you. I am healthy."

"I didn't realise until I got home how much I missed my mother's cooking," Boq chimed in and both girls laughed.

"When do you think Galinda and Fiyero will arrive?" Elphaba asked them conversationally.

Boq laughed. "Knowing them, at the last possible minute. Galinda will want to make an entrance," he predicted wisely and Nessarose scoffed at her best friend.

"Could you sound any more like a creepy stalker? Seriously, just ask Galinda out already!"

Boq reddened. "I don't think I'm her type," he mumbled in embarrassment.

"You won't know until you ask," Elphaba pointed out.

As Boq had predicted, Galinda arrived in the early afternoon the last day of break. She entered the room and greeted Elphaba happily, who was sitting at the piano and pressing absent-mindedly on the keys.

"Hi, Elphie!"

Elphaba looked up at her roommate and smiled slightly. "Hello, Galinda. Welcome back."

"You look _much _better than you did when I left," Galinda said approvingly.

Elphaba chuckled. "Should I still be taking that as a compliment? You're the third person that's said that to me."

Galinda giggled. "It's a compliment, don't worry."

"Ok, if you say so."

Then Galinda looked at Elphaba again, more closely. "You're not wearing your glasses."

Elphaba was surprised. "Um, no, I'm not. I only really need them for reading or I get headaches," she explained. "I just usually find it easier to wear them all the time."

"You look really pretty without them. It really opens your whole face up."

Elphaba blushed slightly, but smiled. "Thank you, I guess."

Galinda sat on the end of her bed and looked at Elphaba in interest.

"What are you doing? Writing a song?"

Elphaba looked away back to the piano and shook her head. "No, just… thinking."

Her fingers floated lightly over the keys, and pressed down on a few. After a moment, Galinda recognised it as part of the melody for the song she had played them after moving in- her lullaby.

Then suddenly, she turned around and smiled. "But enough about me. How was your holiday?"

Galinda filled Elphaba in on every detail of her holidays as she unpacked, and then suggested they head out to get something to eat.

"Is Fiyero here yet?" she asked as they headed downstairs.

Elphaba looked surprised. "I don't know. If he is, I haven't seen him. But you'd think he would be given that classes start tomorrow."

Galinda nodded interestedly. "Oh. I thought he would have come see you when he got back."

Elphaba frowned. "Why?"

The blonde shrugged innocently. "No reason."

As they walked over to the _Wilted Rose, _Elphaba noticed that their fellow students were still torn between looking at Elphaba with wariness and now Galinda as though she had committed treason or some such crime.

"Doesn't it bother you? The people staring at you and talking about you?"

Galinda looked over at her and shrugged. "I'm used it. Although, granted they're staring and talking for different reasons but…. They just don't like changes to the status quo. They'll get over it," she assured her.

It was as they were sitting in the café and making conversation about the classes they had both selected for the semester, when Galinda, who was sitting facing the door, suddenly beamed at waved.

"Ooh, there's Fiyero! Fiyero!"

Elphaba was pretty sure a large portion of Galinda's excitement came from the opportunity to change the subject from talk of school, but she didn't protest.

Fiyero saw them sitting there and came over. "Hey, girls."

He slid into the seat next to Elphaba and casually draped an arm around the back of her chair.

"Happy holidays, guys."

"Hi," Elphaba greeted him. "Did you have a good Lurlinemas?"

Fiyero shrugged. "The usual, nothing too exciting. Although, there was this moment my parents' Lurlinemas party…"

He began to tell the story, which had both Elphaba and Galinda laughing hysterically. When he'd finished, Galinda excused herself to use the bathroom, and Fiyero seized his chance.

"So, Fae… you had a good break? All here by your lonesome?"

She nodded. "Yeah, it was nice having the time to relax, actually," she admitted.

"And the heat," Fiyero prodded.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "And the heat," she agreed reluctantly.

He smiled. "Hey, so I was wondering if maybe you wanted to get dinner sometime this week? One night when you're not working, I mean."

Elphaba's eyes flew to him in shock. "Dinner?"

"Yeah, dinner. You know, night-time meal? I think that was one of the one's you were skipping not so long ago."

She let that dig slide. "As in… you and me?"

Fiyero smiled. "Yeah, you and me. A date. What do you think?"

Elphaba only stared at him blankly. "Why? I mean… why would you want to- to _date _me?"

Fiyero hadn't been expecting that answer. "Are you really asking that question?"

"Fiyero, you're- you're a prince. And I'm… me," Elphaba finished quietly.

She was startled as Fiyero suddenly moved, and it took her a moment to realise he was digging his wallet out of his pants pocket.

"Fiyero, what in Oz-?"

She stopped talking as he took out a tiny scrap of newspaper from his wallet and handed it to her.

Elphaba's gasped slightly as she saw her own handwriting next to the Leo horoscope.

"You _kept _this?" she asked in shock, completely forgetting in that moment she had a similar scrap of paper in her own room.

Fiyero looked her in the eyes and nodded steadily. "Yep. I kept this, even when I wasn't sure why. Because from the first day I met you… you intrigued me, Elphaba Rozek. And the more I get to know you, the more you intrigue me. So, I'd like to take you to dinner."

Elphaba didn't know what to say. And Galinda chose that moment to emerge from the bathrooms. Seeing her, Fiyero spoke quickly.

"Tell you what, why don't you think about it and check your schedule and let me know tomorrow?"

"Ok," Elphaba agreed faintly as she returned the horoscope to him, and that was the end of it.

If Galinda noticed Elphaba was very quiet as they headed back to their room, she didn't comment on it. But when Elphaba headed directly to the book that sat on her nightstand, opened it to her current page and just sat there staring at it, Galinda knew she had to say _something._

"Elphie? What's wrong?" she asked, although she was pretty sure she knew what was wrong- even if she didn't know what Elphaba's answer had been.

Elphaba looked up at Galinda. It was only then she realised Galinda was Fiyero's ex-girlfriend, and she wondered for a moment if she should say anything. But Galinda merely looked at her, and Elphaba got a funny sense Galinda knew more than she was letting on, so she decided to speak.

"Fiyero asked me out."

Galinda smiled slightly. "I thought so. Did you say yes?"

Elphaba blinked. "No. He said to let him know tomorrow."

"But you are going to say yes, aren't you?" Galinda pressed.

"I don't know," Elphaba admitted.

Galinda sat down on her bed and looked across at her roommate. "Do you not like Fiyero?"

Elphaba blushed. "I don't know. I mean... he's nice, but... I don't know. And he said- he said I "intrigue" him. Is that a good enough reason to say yes? Because I _intrigue_ him?"

It didn't sound too bad to Galinda. "That's up to you," she shrugged. "But... it couldn't hurt to try, right? One date?"

Elphaba made a murmur in her throat and returned her gaze to her book.

"Ok, what _are _you looking at?" Galinda demanded impatiently, getting up.

She saw the small scrap of paper and grabbed it before Elphaba could protest. She read it and frowned.

"Is this Fiyero's handwriting?"

Elphaba nodded. "He gave it to me when we met."

Galinda's frowned deepened. "At the OzDust?"

Elphaba chuckled. "No."

She told her the story of the day of Fiyero's arrival, and what had happened. When she'd finished, Galinda was smirking slightly.

"So, you don't know if you like Fiyero, but you kept an old horoscope because he told you to?"

Elphaba laughed in spite of herself and blushed. "I don't know why I kept it," she admitted. "I kept thinking I should throw it out, but I never did."

"Sounds to me like you _like _him," Galinda sang. Then her smile vanished and she frowned again.

"It sounds a little like you liked him while he was dating me, actually."

But then Galinda shook her head and forced a smile. "But moving on. So, you'll say yes?"

Elphaba debated internally for another few moments and then sighed. "I guess I'll never know until I try, right?"

"Right," Galinda agreed.

Then she saw the small frame Fiyero had sent Elphaba for Lurlinemas lying on her desk, and nodded to it.

"Why don't you put that in the frame? It'll last longer than if you constantly use it as a bookmark."

Elphaba was stunned. Getting up slowly, she picked up the frame from her desk and raised the horoscope to it. Her eyes widened as she saw that the paper would indeed fit neatly into the frame.

A small smile played at her lips as she slid it in.

Although she didn't know how he'd known she'd kept the horoscope in the first place, she had to give him credit. It looked like Prince Boy was smarter than she'd thought.


	15. Chapter 15

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. This chapter answers a few questions I've been getting a lot!**

**Sorry it's so late! I literally almost forgot. I've spent all afternoon putting together bookshelves- and now I'm exhausted. **

**Fifteen**

If someone had told Elphaba six months ago that she would be best friends and roommates with Galinda Upland and _dating _Fiyero Tiggular, she would have laughed at the mere absurdity of such an idea.

Yet here she was, not only both those ideas a reality, but with a close and steady circle of friends.

It was March at Shiz, and she and Fiyero had been dating for almost two months. They were taking things slow and getting to know one another; Elphaba couldn't help herself from being unsure of herself, but as time went on, she was gaining more and more confidence. Neither knew how long it would last, but weren't really too worried about that at the moment. Elphaba was very conscious, however, of the fact Fiyero's parents didn't approve of her. Fiyero hadn't said as much, but after they'd been going out for a month, he'd told her about his parents and the conversation they'd had at Lurlinemas.

Elphaba had put on a brave face, and made light of it, she'd been rejected pretty much since birth- literally; and this was nothing different. Fiyero had felt bad, but Elphaba assured him it was much better she knew the truth from the beginning.

And Elphaba and Galinda's friendship was stronger than ever. Galinda had taken it upon herself to give Elphaba fashion advice, including encouraging her to wear her glasses only when she absolutely had to.

"You should show off your pretty eyes," she argued, until Elphaba gave in.

Elphaba knew she should have been happier than she'd ever been before, and in several ways, she was. But the more settled and confident she felt with her studies, friends and Fiyero; the more she had a nagging feelings something was missing. She just wasn't sure what.

"So, what are we doing for your birthday?" Fiyero asked her one day as they and Galinda were heading to class.

Elphaba was surprised. "You remember my birthday?"

Fiyero nodded. "April twelfth. You're an Aries. I _told _you our signs were compatible, remember?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Oh, well, if our signs are compatible," she said sarcastically.

Galinda jumped in hastily. "Elphie! It's your birthday in _two _weeks, and you didn't say anything? How old will you be?"

"Twenty one," Elphaba replied reluctantly. "And we don't know for _sure _that that's when I was born."

"What do you mean?" Fiyero questioned.

Elphaba gave them the same explanation she'd told Nessa and Boq months ago. "I was found on the orphanage doorstep on April thirteenth. A doctor estimated by my size I was less than a day old, so they assumed I was born on April twelfth. But it's still just a guess."

Galinda dismissed that. "OK, so what are we going to do? Dinner? A party at the OzDust? Wait, what day is your birthday on?"

"A Sunday," Elphaba replied. "Galinda, we don't have to do anything."

"Of course we do!" Galinda insisted. "Let's see- so it's you, me, Fiyero, Nessa, Boq, Fyonn, Cailean... is there anyone else you'd like to invite? People from work, maybe?"

Elphaba thought about that for a moment, and then shook her head. "No one at work is really a friend."

Galinda nodded. "OK. So, maybe it's better just to have dinner then. So, you'd probably prefer not to go to _Identity _then. Where could we go?"

She and Fiyero began suggesting restaurants around town as possibilities. Elphaba half-listened, and then something struck her. She abruptly remembered what April twelfth was, in addition to her birthday. It was the anniversary of Nessarose's father death. Elphaba remembered Nessa saying it was a painful day, and she doubted Nessa would feel like celebrating Elphaba's birthday.

She thought of saying something to Galinda and Fiyero, but wasn't sure if Nessa wanted this to be public knowledge.

Instead, later that night, Elphaba slipped over to Madame Morrible's compartments, where Nessarose lived in order to be assisted as needed by the Headshizstress herself.

"Hi, Elphaba. What's going on?" Nessa smiled as Elphaba sat down in the chair offered to her.

"I wanted to talk to you about something," Elphaba began and Ness frowned.

"Ok?"

"Galinda and Fiyero are planning something for my birthday," she explained. "And I just wanted to come and tell you… that I know that day isn't something you look upon with fond memories, so I will _completely _understand if you don't want to come. I won't be offended."

Nessa looked surprised, and she said nothing for a moment.

"Thank you," she said finally. "That's really sweet of you to say, Elphaba. And you're right, that isn't one of my favourite days," she admitted. "But you're my friend. I'd really like to celebrate your birthday with you."

Elphaba smiled. "Thank you. But if you change your mind, I understand," she assured her.

Nessarose laughed and leaned forward in her chair to hug Elphaba.

"I'll keep that in mind."

She was smiling, but she looked sad and Elphaba couldn't help but notice.

"You must miss him."

"I do," Nessarose nodded sadly. "It was such an awful accident…"

Elphaba hesitated. "What happened? If you don't mind me asking," she added hastily.

Nessa shook her head. "Of course not. Um… well, I was sixteen. He fell down the stairs and he broke his neck. He was killed instantly."

Elphaba's eyes widened. "That's horrendible. For you and your mother."

Nessarose nodded again, slowly this time. "Can I… can I confide in you, Elphaba?"

Elphaba was surprised. "If you want to."

The younger girl took a deep breath. "My mother had a drinking problem. For years since I was a child. That night, my father was helping her up the stairs because she was drunk. They were arguing, I could hear them from my bedroom. She tried to push him away, saying she didn't need his help, and then he fell."

Elphaba didn't know what to say. "I'm sorry, Nessa."

Nessa smiled faintly. "My mother's been through a lot. She and my father lost a baby two years before I was born. A girl, she was born stillborn. And I don't really think my mother ever recovered from that. When I was born and the midwife told my parents I'd never walk… I think that was the last straw."

"It couldn't have been easy, growing up like that," Elphaba sympathised.

Nessarose shrugged. "My father and I were very close, which helped. And my mother didn't really have a problem until I was about eight. But my mother's been sober for a year and a half now."

"That's really good," Elphaba smiled. "It must have been hard for her, going through everything like that."

"I didn't even know about my sister until I was five," Nessarose admitted. "It's too hard for my parents to talk about. I heard about it from Boq's mother."

The two girls spoke for a few more moments, and then Elphaba said goodbye and returned to her room.

The next day, Fiyero came up to Elphaba as she was leaving the building for a shift at _Identity. _

"Hey," he greeted her, kissing her quickly.

"Hi," Elphaba returned, smiling at him. "What's going on?"

"_I,_" Fiyero sang, wrapping an arm around her waist as he fell into step with her. "Found the _perfect _place to have your birthday dinner, because I am the wonderful, amazing guy that I am."

Elphaba laughed and he raised an eyebrow at her playfully.

"Are you saying I'm not wonderful and amazing, Miss Fae?"

"I wouldn't dare," Elphaba deadpanned, trying to keep a straight face. "So, where is this _perfect _place?"

"I don't know if I want to tell you now," Fiyero said in mock hurt.

But he didn't last long under Elphaba's pointed stare before caving in. "Yeah, okay. You know that place _Odessa's?"_

Elphaba knew it, and her stomach dropped. That was the first restaurant she had gone to for work- the one that had threatened to call the authorities if she didn't leave.

She smiled weakly at Fiyero. "Yeah, I know it. Sounds great."

She didn't know why she didn't tell Fiyero about her experience there, the truth is, the memory of it still made her cringe. At the thought of going back there, she felt ill.

"Listen," she said suddenly, turning to him. "I've got to run or I'll be late for work."

Fiyero didn't question her. "Sure. What time do you finish?"

"Seven."

"I'll pick you up after?" he suggested and she smiled, more genuinely this time.

"Ok," she agreed.

Fiyero kissed her again and she hurried off, wondering what to do.

Every time the topic came up in conversation over the next few weeks, Elphaba contributed little to the conversation, but no one seemed to notice. Galinda and Fiyero were both excited about the plans, and Elphaba didn't have the heart to break the truth to them.

On the Friday before her birthday, when the mail was delivered, it brought Elphaba a lovely card and bracelet from Kistine. Some of the other children at the orphanage who knew Elphaba had signed the card, which made her smile.

"That's so sweet!" Galinda cried, looking at it as Elphaba displayed it on her nightstand proudly next to the framed horoscope from Fiyero.

"I didn't realise how much I missed some of the kids," she admitted. "But it's nice when you know that some of them are missing because they've been adopted."

"It must have been hard," Galinda said quietly. "Growing up and watching all the other children get adopted."

Elphaba shrugged. "By the time I got to about ten, I knew it wasn't going to ever happen. Most people want to adopt babies. Once you get over five, it's rarer and rarer you'll be adopted."

"And you don't know _anything _about your birth parents?" Galinda asked.

Elphaba hesitated. "No. I mean… not official."

Galinda frowned. "What does that mean?"

Elphaba took a deep breath and sat down, looking at Galinda solemnly. "I have dreams. For as long as I can remember. They never make sense, and they're usually just… flashes. Kistine took me to see a woman once about it… Yackle. A magic woman. Yackle seemed to believe that these… dreams, were signs about my birth parents."

Galinda's eyes were as wide as saucers. "Sweet Oz! Really? _Dreams? _Like magic?"

Elphaba shrugged modestly. "I don't know, I guess. Like I said, I don't know what they mean."

"What kind of flashes do you get?" Galinda demanded, eager for details.

Elphaba sighed thoughtfully. "It's usually a few same images. Lightning… an Antelope…"

Galinda looked confused. "That means…"

"Nothing, I know," Elphaba finished. "See what I mean? The only other thing I have is this."

She reached into her nightstand drawer and pulled out the green glass bottle, which she handed to Galinda.

"This was with me on the doorstep."

Galinda took it gingerly. "Wow. I've never seen anything like this before."

"Me neither."

"You've never thought of trying to use this to find anything out about your parents?"

Elphaba shook her head. "There was a time when I was about fifteen when I used to look in all the shop windows that sold stuff like this in case I saw something similar, but… then I gave up. I mean, my parents… they gave me up for a reason. Which I'm guessing isn't really a mystery," she muttered, looking at her green hands.

Galinda frowned and jumped up to sit on Elphaba's bed next to her friend. "Elphie, you mustn't think like that! For all you know, your parents had a very good reason for giving you up! Maybe they couldn't take care of you. Maybe they- they died. You don't know. You shouldn't assume the worst," she scolded lightly.

Elphaba smiled slightly. "Thanks, Galinda."

The blonde hugged her. "You're welcome."

When Elphaba's birthday finally dawned, she was rudely awoken by a knock on the door. Galinda woke up at the sound too, and groaned.

"What time is it?" she croaked sleepily.

Elphaba reluctantly rolled over and looked at her alarm clock, and then she groaned too.

"Seven o'clock," she replied.

"Who in Oz name is up at this hour on a _Sunday?" _Galinda demanded.

"Answer the door and find out," Elphaba retorted, shutting her eyes again.

There was another knock, louder this time.

"You answer it," Galinda snapped back. She was so not a morning person.

Elphaba was tempted to argue back that it was her birthday, which meant she shouldn't have to answer the door, but instead she got up and grabbed her robe, running her fingers through her hair as she headed for the door.

She jumped slightly as she opened the door to find Fiyero, Fyonn and Cailean standing in the hall. Fyonn was holding the strings to a large bunch of balloons; Cailean was holding a candlelit cake, chocolate with the words _Happy Birthday Fae _in green icing; and Fiyero was in the centre with a bouquet of flowers and a present.

Before she could say anything, they began to sing.

"Happy birthday to you, Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday, dear Elphaba, Happy birthday to you!"

Elphaba blushed furiously with embarrassment. They were making no trouble to keep their voices down, and she was worried the noise would wake other students up.

"Oh, that's so _sweet!" _Galinda exclaimed, appearing at Elphaba's shoulder.

Elphaba didn't know whether to laugh or hit them.

"You guys," she began, but didn't know how to finish it.

"Happy birthday, Fae!" Fiyero grinned, leaning forward to kiss her.

"Quick, blow out the candles," Cailean ordered her, stepping forward with the cake.

Elphaba was about to protest, but at pointed looks from all three boys and Galinda, she merely rolled her eyes and did as requested.

"These are for you," Fyonn said with a small obeisance, handing her the balloons.

"And these are for you," Fiyero added, handing her the flowers and the present.

"And you get cake when you get dressed and meet us in the courtyard," Cailean chimed in. "Nessa and Boq are meeting us there. Be there in ten minutes, or I can't guarantee you'll get a piece."

Elphaba stared at him blankly. "I'm not sure if I want cake at seven in the morning," she said.

"Trust me, you do. Ten minutes!" Cailean cried, and he and Fyonn headed back down the hall, carrying the cake away.

Fiyero grinned at Elphaba, still clearly proud with himself for what they'd done. "Happy birthday," he said again. "I'll see you downstairs."

Then he kissed her cheek and followed his friends, leaving Elphaba standing slightly shell-shocked in the doorway, holding the flowers and balloons and the gift from Fiyero.

"I can't believe them," she said finally, closing the door.

"I know. Ten minutes is _nowhere _near long enough to get ready!" Galinda complained.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Not what I was referring to, Glin."

"Oh, right. Well, you have to admit Elphie, it was sweet. Here, I'll put these in water for you," she offered, taking the flowers from her.

Elphaba wondered what to do with the balloons and finally put them in a corner, watching them float towards the ceiling.

"What did Fiyero get you?"

Elphaba opened the present and found a beautiful journal and pen inside.

"Wow," she said in surprise, not really expecting anything at all.

"That's lovely," Galinda commented admiringly, even if it was nothing like she would have wanted for her birthday. "Come on, we should get ready or we'll miss out on cake."

"Isn't it too early for cake?" Elphaba asked.

Galinda laughed. "Elphie, it's never too early for cake!"

The blonde placed the vase on Elphaba's desk, then approached her and hugged her warmly.

"Happy birthday."

Elphaba smiled slightly. "Thanks."

When the girls finally got downstairs, they found Cailean and Fyonn mysteriously missing, but Nessa and Boq were there, both of whom greeted Elphaba with a warm "happy birthday."

"What happened to the cake?" Galinda asked in horror.

Elphaba looked over her friend's shoulder and laughed. There was perhaps a quarter of the cake still standing; the rest was a pile of crumbs and frosting.

"Um… Cailean and Fyonn got bored waiting," Fiyero explained sheepishly.

"Food fight?" Elphaba asked knowingly, and he nodded.

"Yeah, they've just gone to… clean up a bit."

Elphaba laughed even harder when the boys returned, still with cake stained on their clothes and hair.

Galinda was horrified, but all the others thought it was hilarious.

For her birthday present, Galinda had taken Elphaba shopping for something to wear to dinner that night. And finally, three hours later, Elphaba had reluctantly given in and chosen something to wear. She'd found a simple charcoal grey dress, which fell to her knees and had cap sleeves.

Galinda pronounced it "simply elegant" and Elphaba had only smiled. And Nessarose had lent her a pair of shoes when she'd discovered they had the same size foot, a pair of simple grey shoes with a small heel. And she wore her hair simply, long and straight, with a long thick silver ribbon acting as a headband to keep her hair off her face.

"You look great," Fiyero greeted her when they all met up outside the girls' building.

Elphaba blushed faintly. "Thank you."

"Shall we go?" Boq suggested.

Elphaba felt the knot of dread that had been in her stomach since Fiyero had first mentioned _Odessa's _grow tighter and tighter as they headed into town, and she felt positively ill as the restaurant came into view.

"Hi," Fiyero greeted the maître d when they arrived. "We've got a six-thirty reservation under Tiggular? Party of seven?"

The man checked the book before him and nodded. "Of course. This way please."

Fiyero took Elphaba's hand lightly in his as they began to follow, and as they entered the dining room, a woman passed by. A woman, Elphaba immediately recognised her, as the manager. When she saw Elphaba, her eyes widened.

"Excuse me," she said, stopping the group in their tracks. "I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Unconsciously, Elphaba's grip on Fiyero's hand tightened. Fiyero didn't notice as he frowned at the woman.

"I'm sorry?" he asked in confusion.

She looked directly at Elphaba, her eyes hard. "I told you the last time, I don't want your kind in here. You'll ruin my business. Please leave."

Fiyero's eyes flashed dangerously. "_Her_ kind? What do you mean by that?" he demanded coldly.

"Yero, don't," Elphaba begged in a whisper, but he either didn't hear her or chose to ignore her.

The manager faltered only slightly under Fiyero's glare. "My customers don't need to be faced with someone like her while they eat," she said stiffly.

Elphaba flushed in embarrassment.

"It's small-minded people like you-" Fiyero began hotly, but Elphaba placed a hand on his arm softly.

"Fiyero, please just drop it. Let's just leave," she suggested.

"No, Elphaba," Galinda said firmly, but the woman caught Fiyero's name and put two and two together.

"Prince Fiyero? Of the Vinkus?" She asked, her eyes widening. "Well... I mean... that's a horse of a different colour! I'm sure we can work out-"

Fiyero interrupted, still furious. "What because I'm a prince, you've changed your mind? You'll stick us somewhere in the back where no one can see us and try and assure us it's a private room and we're getting special treatment; rather than a way to get my money and be in my good graces? Because let me tell you-"

"Fiyero!" Nessa cut him off loudly.

He turned, angry but distracted. "_What?"_

"Elphaba just left," Nessa pointed out.

The group looked around and saw that she was right- the green girl had gone. With one last glare at the manager, Fiyero turned on his heel and hurried out of the restaurant, the others following.

Elphaba was only halfway down the street, but Fiyero still had to jog to catch up to her.

"Fae, wait!"

She stopped walking but didn't turn, so Fiyero stood so he was facing her.

"Are you okay?" he asked gently.

"Sure," she said flatly.

Fiyero felt horribly guilty about what had happened. "Why didn't you say anything when I suggested the place?"

"Because I was embarrassed, okay?" Elphaba burst out. "How was I supposed to tell you or Galinda when you were both so excited about this? And what would I have said? That I went there looking for work and she threatened to call the authorities before I was two feet in the door?"

There were tears in her eyes, but Elphaba refused to let them fall, even as Fiyero drew her into his arms and held her comfortingly.

"I'm sorry," he said quietly.

Elphaba shook her head, as she pulled away. "It's fine."

Galinda was crying quietly as she hurried forward to hug Elphaba tightly. She hadn't realised just how awful people treated Elphaba until she'd become friends with the green girl, and Galinda was pretty sure that had been the most awful thing she'd ever seen.

Finally, Cailean spoke what they were all thinking.

"Jeez, what a _bitch!"_

Even Elphaba laughed, despite herself.

"Can I make a suggestion?" Fyonn chimed in. "Let's go to _Identity, _have a nice dinner and let Elphaba give us an employee's discount on the bill?"

Elphaba smiled. "I might even be able to swindle free cheesecake for dessert for my birthday," she agreed.

"Sounds good," Boq grinned.

"The dinner or free cheesecake?" Nessa asked him.

"I wouldn't say no to either," the Munchkin replied honestly.

As they headed towards _Identity, _Fiyero slid his arm around Elphaba's waist and held her close.

"I love you," he whispered in her ear, and Elphaba stopped walking and looked at him, startled.

"What?" she asked, thinking she'd misheard him.

But Fiyero met her gaze steadily. "I love you."

Elphaba was surprised by the burning tears in her eyes at those three little words. No one had ever said them to her before, and she hadn't really expected Fiyero to say them to her now. She didn't know what to say in return. Did she love Fiyero? _Yes, _the answer came to her suddenly and she wasn't sure how she knew it, she just did. It took her a moment to figure out how to talk around the lump in her throat.

"I love you too," she said shyly, and Fiyero kissed her temple softly as they fell into step with the others again.

That night, Elphaba lay in bed for a while, trying to fall asleep. She couldn't work it out. After the incident at _Odessa's, _they'd had a really nice night. Idonea had given them free dessert, as Elphaba had predicted, and all the staff had sung happy birthday to her- much to her embarrassment. She'd had a lovely night with wonderful friends, and her boyfriend had told her he loved her.

Elphaba had no doubt that he did, or that she loved him in return; so the empty, somewhat lost feeling she was experiencing in her gut left her feeling confused.

She just couldn't work it out. What was missing?

**AN. Did anyone pick the _Wizard of Oz _line in this chapter?**

**Sorry for anyone who wanted to see the first date! I just felt like I'd written the Fiyeraba first date/kiss 1000 times before and wasn't sure if I could do it and make it seem fresh. So, I thought I'd give myself a break.**


	16. Chapter 16

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**Sixteen**

_A flash of lightning, illuminating a window pane..._

_The dim features of an Antelope's face, looking down at her..._

_A brightly coloured hot air balloon, floating through the sky..._

_A gasp, then the sickening thud of someone falling to the ground..._

_The familiar refrain of the lullaby... a woman's voice humming..._

_The clink of glasses, raised in a toast in the shadows. _

"_Wherever you fly, this isn't goodbye. My love will follow you, stay with you..."_

_A man's voice, cold and angry. "Take it away!"_

_Another flash of lightning and an enormous, rumbling clap of thunder..._

Elphaba jolted awake, sitting upright in bed, breathing heavily. The room was dark, and it was raining outside, she could hear it pelting down on the roof and windows.

A spark of lightning made her jump, and as the thunder rolled over mere seconds later, Elphaba wondered if the thunder had been a part of her dream at all, or merely she had been waking up at the same moment, yet unaware of it.

It took Elphaba a moment to realise she was trembling, but she knew why. There were parts of that dream that were new.

The hot air balloon; the clink of glasses; and most sickening, the thudding sound- all of these were new. But the thing, Elphaba knew, that had caused her to awaken so suddenly, was the voice.

"Take it _away!"_

It had been a man's voice. He had said the words coldly, carelessly. Elphaba didn't know what the words were in reference to, but they were spoken as though it was nothing more than a piece of trash.

It sent chills down her spine, just the mere memory of it made her shudder.

Elphaba groped through the darkness until she found her alarm clock on her nightstand. Squinting at the time, she saw that it was just after four-thirty in the morning and sighed, flopping back against her pillows.

She never really fell back asleep, she only dozed lightly for about an hour before dawn. It was still raining and a horrendible day when she woke up again, and she was very quiet as she and Galinda headed to the cafeteria for breakfast.

"Are you ok, Elphie?" Galinda asked, noticing her friend's abnormal silence.

Elphaba forced a smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. I just didn't sleep well."

Galinda accepted that easily, but Fiyero was less willing to let it go. If she hadn't been so distracted, she would have smiled. In the two weeks since Elphaba's birthday, he seemed to be more protective of her than he had before, which she found slightly irritating, yet endearing.

He didn't get a chance to talk to her until he found her in the library that afternoon.

"So, what's going on?" he asked casually, sitting next to her on a loveseat in the library as she read.

Elphaba was surprised. "What do you mean?"

"You're quiet today," he noted.

She shook her head. "It's fine. It's just a gross day and I didn't sleep well last night. That's all."

Fiyero raised an eyebrow pointedly. "Fae, come on. What's going on?"

Elphaba hesitated, then sighed, putting down her book. "For as long as I can remember, I've been having dreams. They never make sense, and they're usually just the few same images. And the song… the lullaby? That's how I got it. And nothing ever really changes. I mean, it took years before the words for the song came with the music but… it's always the same thing. But last night's dream was different."

Fiyero frowned. "How so?"

"Things were different. It still makes no sense, but…"

"What kind of things did you see?"

Elphaba took a deep breath, trying to remember. "Well… at first it was the same things as usual. Lightning, an Antelope-"

"Antelope or antelope?" Fiyero asked, just to clarify.

Elphaba paused. "I'm not sure… does it matter?"

"Not really, I was just curious. Go on."

"I heard the lullaby, but that's nothing new."

"So what _was_ new?" Fiyero pressed.

"I saw a hot air balloon. The rest of it was really just sounds. There was something that sounded like a clinking of glasses; the sound of someone falling, and… a man. Saying "take it away." And then I woke up."

Fiyero had to admit that none of that meant anything to him.

"So, you have no idea what any of it means?"

Elphaba shook her head. "No. Kistine took me to a magic woman once who seemed to think they had something to do with my birth parents. But _nothing _ever means anything!"

Fiyero could tell she was frustrated, and reached over to take her hand.

"Fae, what bugs you most about this? That the dreams are changing?"

His girlfriend shook her head. "No. It was the voice," she admitted. "It just… it sent chills down my spine. It was _so… _creepy. Like I wasn't safe."

Fiyero wrapped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her into his arms.

"You're safe, Fae. I promise," he said softly.

Elphaba relaxed in his embrace, feeling better than she had so far all day.

"Have you ever thought about trying to find your birth parents?" Fiyero asked suddenly.

Elphaba was surprised, and she pulled away to look up at him. "Uh… no. I mean, not really. There were plenty of kids in the orphanage who had been given up for adoption and it's natural to imagine about finding your birth parents. Especially if you're waiting to be adopted. But… I don't remember ever even asking about my birth parents. There was this bottle that was left with me on the doorstep, and I remember asking Kistine about it once. She told me the truth, that it had been left with me. I never asked again."

"But what about when you got older?"

She shrugged. "That requires time, and money. And I don't have that kind of money, and even if I did, I'd have no clue where to start."

"I'd pay," Fiyero offered immediately and Elphaba laughed dryly.

"Yes, I'm sure your parents would be _thrillified _to foot the bill for your girlfriend whom they hate to find her birth parents."

"They don't hate you," Fiyero protested.

"They just don't think I'm good enough for you," Elphaba finished for him. "Whether because I'm green or because I'm an orphan, it doesn't really surprise me."

Fiyero tilted her chin up so she was meeting his gaze. "Hey. My parents are going to meet you, get to know you and fall in love with you. Just like I did."

Elphaba couldn't help but grin. "Hopefully not _just _like you did. Or that would be awkward," she said teasingly.

Fiyero laughed, and she leaned up to kiss him.

"Thank you for the offer," she said sincerely. "But I really don't think it's a good idea."

"For me to pay or for you to find your parents?"

"Both. Honestly, I don't need to find them. I'm sure they had their reasons for giving me up," Elphaba replied.

But she wasn't sure if she was trying to convince Fiyero or herself.

Elphaba found herself thinking about their conversation all afternoon. That night, when they were sitting with Galinda, Nessa and Boq at the cafeteria for dinner, Boq suddenly looked over at Elphaba.

"Can I ask you a question?"

Elphaba paused unsurely for a moment. "Go ahead," she answered, mystified as to what it could be.

"Do you think your birth parents are green?"

Her response was to stare at him for a long moment while she tried to work out if he was being serious or not.

"Really?" she asked, raising an eyebrow slightly.

"What in Oz's name made you ask _that?" _demanded Nessa.

Boq shrugged, looking slightly sheepish. "I don't know. I was really bored in the history lecture today and my mind started wandering…"

"To whether my birth parents are green too? Because, I have to admit Boq, that's a bit creepy," Elphaba said.

"That was the end result of a _long _and confusifying train of thought," Boq was hasty to defend himself. "But I just wondered."

Elphaba shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I've wondered a few times over the years, but I always figured if they were… wouldn't we have heard? Isn't green people a big deal?"

"Well, yeah, but we'd never heard of you before you showed up here," Boq pointed out.

"Do you think you might ever want to find them?" Galinda asked, trying to be more tactful than Boq.

"I don't know. Maybe I _do_ want to find them," Elphaba replied, surprising everyone including herself.

"Really?" Fiyero asked her, surprised. "This afternoon-"

"I know," Elphaba cut him off. "I know. I said I'd never thought about it. But I've been thinking about it since you asked. And… I don't know… I wouldn't know how to look or where to start," she admitted.

"But I have questions. And as happy as I am right now, a bit of me feels… lost. Like something's missing. So, maybe… maybe trying to find the answers to some of my questions is the answer."

Galinda looked excited. "Oh, this is going to be wonderful! You'll find your parents, and have this wonderful reunion, and then we'll have a big festivation to celebrate!"

Elphaba thought she was being radically optimistic, but decided against reminding her things could not end so happily.

"How would I go about trying to find them?" she asked the table at large.

"What about Kistine?" Fiyero asked. "Would she know anything?"

Elphaba looked doubtful. "I doubt it. If she knew anything, why wouldn't she have said it before?"

"Maybe because you never asked?" Nessa suggested practically.

"It's worth a try," Galinda agreed.

Elphaba laughed dryly. "Yeah, I'm just going to go to the orphanage and ask her if she knows anything about my birth parents."

Fiyero raised an eyebrow in response without saying anything. Elphaba saw it and understood exactly what he was suggesting.

"No! I couldn't!"

"Couldn't you?" Fiyero countered.

Elphaba faltered. "I can't! I have work, and school… how would I even get there?"

"We'll get a carriage."

It was her turn to raise an eyebrow. "_We?"_

"Yeah, you don't think I'd let you go alone, do you? Moral support or whatever," he grinned.

Elphaba smiled softly at him. "Thank you. But still, I have school and work."

"So, tell them you can't work for a weekend," Galinda chimed in. "You haven't taken any time off since you started there, except for those few days you were in the hospital; you don't need the money for rent or bills or anything; and I don't think Alun and Idonea would mind."

"And if you go on a weekend, you don't have to worry about school," Boq pointed out. "How long does it take to get to the Emerald City from here?"

"A few hours," Elphaba replied.

Nessa shrugged. "So, you leave Saturday morning, and come back Sunday afternoon. You won't lose that much time."

Fiyero looked to her. "What do you think, Fae? The Royal family has an apartment we can stay in, and I can get a carriage for this weekend?"

"I think I'd have to give the restaurant at least a week's notice," Elphaba pointed out, although she appreciated his enthusiasm.

"OK, so next weekend," he shrugged.

"I guess we could go next weekend," Elphaba said slowly.

Galinda's face lit up as she had an idea. "Oh, could I come, Elphie? I've always wanted to see the Emerald City."

"If you want to," Elphaba agreed.

"We should all go," Fiyero suggested.

"That sounds fun," Boq nodded eagerly.

Elphaba looked around the table and chuckled faintly in disbelief. "So, we're doing this? Next weekend?"

"Absolutely," Nessa confirmed.

Elphaba was overwhelmed by a rush of affection for her friends, that they were willing to go all the way to the Emerald City with her, for what could very well turn out to be a fruitless journey.

She wasn't really expecting anything to come of it, but she meant what she had said.

It was time to try and find some answers to her questions.


	17. Chapter 17

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**Seventeen**

As the skyline of the Emerald City came into view, Elphaba felt a combination of joy and dread.

On one hand, she hadn't realised until this moment just how much she had missed the City. The place where she had grown up, where no one stared or pointed at her skin. She was looking forward to seeing Kistine again and some of the children from the orphanage that had been there before she left.

But on the other hand, the orphanage was neither in the most fancy of neighbourhoods or the most kept up of buildings. The thought of Fiyero, Galinda, Nessa and Boq seeing just how sparse the place was where she had grown up… she didn't fear their condemnation or their disgust. She feared their pity. Yes, the orphanage was somewhat bare, but it was a huge improvement over what the crapartment had been; and Elphaba didn't feel as though she had been too badly deprived of anything.

Yet she couldn't help but watch their faces as they passed through the city towards the Ernest Rusch's Children Home.

To their credit, none of them showed any visible reaction, even as they pulled up outside the orphanage and all peered through the windows looking out at the building.

"It hasn't changed a bit," Elphaba said, looking up at it.

She wasn't sure if she had expected it to change or if she was disappointed that it hadn't.

Fiyero took her hand and squeezed it encouragingly. "Are you ready for this?"

She nodded. "Sure. Let's go."

Fiyero and Boq lifted out Nessa's chair and helped her into it, before the five of them approached the building.

Elphaba felt incredibly strange as she knocked on a door she had never knocked upon in her entire life- except for one time when she was eleven and had accidentally been locked outside.

There were a few moments of silence as they waited for the door to be opened. Elphaba was just debating whether to knock again, when they heard the unmistakable sounds of footsteps approaching.

She took a deep breath, for some reason feeling nervous, but then her nerves vanished and she smiled warmly to find herself staring into the surprised face of Kistine.

"Hi," she greeted her.

"Elphaba!" Kistine exclaimed. "What are you _doing _here?"

Elphaba didn't have a chance to answer before the older woman had pulled her into a hug.

"Oof... okay," Elphaba laughed slightly as she returned the hug.

Kistine noticed that Elphaba was not alone, and pulled away. "So, these are your friends?"

Elphaba nodded. "Yes. Everyone, this is Kistine. This is Fiyero, Galinda, Nessarose and Boq," she introduced them all and Kistine smiled warmly.

"It's very nice to meet you all. So, what brings you to the Emerald City?"

"Actually, I had something I wanted to talk to you about. They came with me... for support," Elphaba replied.

Kistine didn't blink, but knew from Elphaba's tone that this was very important.

"Alright. Elphaba, why don't you show them to the parlour and I'll be there in a moment."

Elphaba smiled gratefully and nodded. "Ok. Come on, guys."

Kistine disappeared upstairs, and Elphaba led them to the back of the first floor, into a small room.

Elphaba sat in the middle of the couch, with Fiyero and Galinda either side of her. Nessa wheeled her chair to be next to Galinda, and Boq took the armchair next to Fiyero.

When Kistine entered, she sat in an armchair opposite the couch and smiled expectantly at Elphaba.

"So, what's on your mind, Fabala?"

Elphaba blushed slightly at the sound of the pet name Kistine had sometimes used for her as a child, and pretended not to see Fiyero's raised eyebrow.

"I've been doing some thinking recently... I know in the past, I've never really asked about- about my parents. Lately though, I've really been wondering about them. And I wanted to ask if you knew anything, more than the bottle."

Kistine didn't look surprised. Instead, she was still smiling at Elphaba.

"I will never forget the day I found you," she began.

Elphaba chuckled and rolled her eyes. "Kistine, I've heard this story a million times," she said fondly.

"We haven't, so shh," Galinda interrupted her.

Kistine laughed and continued with the story. "It was twenty-one years ago, the morning of April thirteenth. It was six o'clock in the morning and I was up because I had forgotten to put the milk bottles out the night before, and the milkman usually came between six-thirty and seven o'clock.

So, I grabbed the empty bottles from the kitchen and hurried to put them outside. I opened the door, and I wasn't even thinking. I didn't look, I just went to move. And a flash of green caught my eye, which was lucky. Because right at my feet, so close to the door I would have _stepped_ on her if I hadn't seen the green- was a tiny, green baby girl, fast asleep."

"Aww!" Galinda and Nessarose exclaimed softly in unison, and Elphaba rolled her eyes at them.

Kistine laughed gently. "Now, children come to us in different ways. Some come to live here when their parents die; others are brought to me by the hospital or the police. I've had parents turn up with their child because they either can't care for it, or because they've chosen to give their child up for other reasons. But I've been doing this for thirty years. And Elphaba was the _first _baby I'd had to be left on my doorstep in the middle of the night."

"And there was no note," Elphaba said quietly.

Kistine shook her head sadly. "No. I'm sorry, dear. You had precious little with you when you arrived. The bottle, a cloth that had been fashioned as a diaper, and..."

Kistine trailed off, and abruptly got up and left the room. When she returned, minutes later, she was carrying a soft pale purple blanket in her hands.

"Here, this was the blanket you were left in. I'm sure you'll understand I didn't keep your diaper," she smiled and Elphaba managed a small smile in return.

She took the blanket from her with shaking hands. It was incredibly soft to touch, and didn't look anywhere as old as it was.

"I should have given that to you years ago," Kistine said quietly. "I'm sorry."

Elphaba shook her head. "No, its fine," she assured her.

"I saw what you went through with the bottle, and I didn't want to make it harder on you," she explained. "There's nothing I can tell you about this blanket that might help... it's just a blanket."

Elphaba tucked the blanket into her shoulder bag, not being able to think of anything to say. It had been a dead end.

And although she had been somewhat expecting that, she was still disappointed.

"How about some tea?" Kistine suggested.

"That would be wonderful, thank you," Nessa said graciously.

"Wonderful. Would anyone like a tour? I'm sure Elphaba would be happy to show you around while I get the tea?"

Elphaba nodded. "Yeah, I can do that."

"I'll come," Fiyero agreed.

Nessarose gestured to her chair. "Thank you, but I don't think I can. I'll stay here."

Boq decided to stay with Nessa, but Fiyero and Galinda both decided to be shown around the orphanage.

"So, downstairs is the foyer and reception; the kitchen; dining room; Kistine's office and parlour and a bathroom," Elphaba explained, leading the way to the stairs.

"Third floor is the common room, the rooms for any kids over thirteen we have; and a study room, and a few more bathrooms. And the second floor is bathrooms and dorm rooms for the younger kids, and Kistine's bedroom."

"Which was your room?" Galinda asked as they reached the second floor landing.

Elphaba opened her mouth to reply, but was interrupted by a new voice.

"Elphaba?"

Elphaba turned and they saw a girl aged about ten or eleven standing in the hall, looking at Elphaba with a combination of surprise and delight.

Elphaba smiled genuinely. "Hi, Vasanti!"

The girl hurried forward to hug Elphaba tightly, who returned it easily.

"I thought this place seemed strangely quiet," Elphaba said lightly. "I was wondering where everyone was."

"We're outside. This is the first nice day we've had in weeks," the girl explained. "I just had to come back inside for a hat. You should come say hi!"

"I will once I've finished showing my friends around," Elphaba promised.

The girl looked past Elphaba and saw Fiyero and Galinda. Her eyes widened in shock.

"Oh my Oz, you're Fiyero Tiggular!" she gasped.

Fiyero grinned at her. "Hello."

Before she could gush too much, Elphaba swiftly intervened. "Ok, that's Fiyero and this is Galinda. Guys, this is Vasanti. I'll be out to say hi as soon as I can," she assured her and sent the girl on her way.

"Someone has a crush," teased Galinda.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Please, you haven't seen anything."

Fiyero stilled uncertainly. "What do you mean?"

Elphaba smirked, and beckoned to them. She led them down the hall, and paused outside a few doors.

"Hmm…" she said thoughtfully. Then she opened one on the left, and let out a soft "Ha!" of satisfaction.

Somewhat tentatively, Fiyero and Galinda came forward to look into the room. Fiyero groaned as he saw a collage on the wall, full of newspaper and magazine pictures of himself.

Elphaba and Galinda giggled.

"How did you know this would be here?" Fiyero asked his girlfriend.

She laughed dryly. "Please, since the '_scandalacious' _Fiyero Tiggular started making news three years ago, this isn't a rare occurrence for any bedroom for girls over the age of twelve, usually. And when you grow up with anywhere from five to a dozen girls in that age group, you learn to pick which girls are more likely to have them."

"I had a scrapbook," Galinda admitted and Elphaba and Fiyero stared at her.

"_Had," _Galinda repeated. "Past tense."

"Did you have one?" Fiyero asked Elphaba in interest, grinning.

"No," she replied immediately, and headed back towards the stairs.

"Why do I have no trouble believing that?" she heard Fiyero ask Galinda, who laughed.

"Feel insulted?" the blonde asked.

Fiyero's answer made Elphaba smile. "No, actually. It kind of makes me love her more."

**AN. Big favour: My FF/twitter BFF, the lovely Julia-Caesar has FINALLY updated one of her Wicked fics, "Faking my own suicide". It's a good story, and it's a great chapter and PLEASE review so she can write more, because I'm dying to know what's happening.**


	18. Chapter 18

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. I'm glad you all liked the last chapter- specifically Galinda's scrapbook :P**

**This chapter is for PocketSevens and Kestrel135- the _only _people to mention the blanket in their reviews! :D**

**Eighteen**

It wasn't until after dusk that they finally reached the Vinkun royal Family's Emerald City apartment. As promised, Elphaba had gone outside to visit the children and introduce them to her friends; and then Kistine had insisted they stay for dinner.

"I'm sorry that we didn't really learn anything," Nessa said to Elphaba as they entered.

She was the first one to raise the topic, the reason they had come to the City in the first place.

Elphaba shrugged lightly. "Honestly, I didn't really expect anything from it. But I figured it was worth a try, right?"

Fiyero tried to make light of the situation. "And at least you got a free blanket out of it, right?"

"_Fiyero!" _Galinda scolded him, but Elphaba only laughed.

"Right," she agreed, pulling said blanket out of her bag.

Suddenly, Boq frowned. "Hey, can I have a look at that?"

Elphaba thought nothing of it. "Sure," she said, handing it to him.

Boq took it, and after examining it for a few moments, nodded knowingly.

"I thought so."

Elphaba frowned. "You thought what?" she demanded.

Instead of answering, Boq handed the blanket to Nessa. "Feel that."

Puzzled, Nessa took it as all the others waited expectantly, and confusified. Then Nessa gasped slightly, and looked at Boq, who again nodded.

"_What_ is going on?" Elphaba demanded.

Nessa looked over at Elphaba and tried to explain. "Boq and I have seen this wool before."

Elphaba looked at her blankly. "Which helps how?"

Boq jumped in. "You don't understand. This is merino wool. It's specific to Munchkinland."

Elphaba sat up straighter on the couch. "Wait, what? How do you know? That it's merino wool, I mean?"

"Munchkinland is all farmland. It's mostly corn and sheep," Boq said dryly. "Trust me, we know."

"But, what does this mean?" Galinda asked. "I mean, surely m-merino? Merino wool… products are… like- exported _out _of Munchkinland?"

Nessarose shook her head. "No. Any wool products exported out of the province are made from finer wool, more expensive. It's really only the locals that use merino wool."

Fiyero was paying close attention. "Wait, you're saying Elphaba's a Munchkin?"

"Well, my point was that the _blanket _was from Munchkinland," Boq said doubtfully. He looked at Elphaba carefully.

"How tall are you?"

Elphaba blinked. "Five feet six."

"Yeah, you're way too tall to be a Munchkin," Boq said immediately.

"Boq," Nessarose scolded him. "You know perfectly well there's some tall Munchkins. I'm five foot four," she reminded him.

"You're also only Munchkinlander by birth," he replied pointedly. "Your parents are Gilikinese."

"I'm five foot three!" Galinda chimed in.

"Five feet ten," Fiyero added.

"Five foot one," Boq muttered dully.

"Is that tall or short for a Munchkin?" Fiyero asked curiously.

"It's above average," Nessa answered him. "Most Munchkins are below five feet."

Galinda was getting bored of this conversation. "So, to get back to the point- are we saying Elphaba is a Munchkin?"

Nessa and Boq exchanged a glance.

"There's other possibilities as to how the blanket may have gotten to another province," Boq replied. "For example, if her parents had been given the blanket from a Munchkin friend; or if they had lived in Munchkinland and moved; or bought it on a visit-"

Nessa cut him off before he could list every possible explanation.

"The point is, there is a chance that you could have been born in Munchkinland, Elphaba," she said gently. "At least… it's a lead, isn't it?"

Elphaba was trying to process everything. Nessa was right, it was a lead; which was more of an idea than she'd had before.

"So, what now? I somehow get to Munchkinland and ask around if anyone had a green baby twenty-one years ago that they gave up?"

"Well, that's kind of a flaw," Boq admitted.

"Especially when you could there and find out nothing," Galinda pointed out practically. "It's a lot of money, and Munchkinland's rather big, isn't it?"

Fiyero turned to Elphaba, taking her hand in his. "My offer to pay still stands. For whatever you need."

Elphaba smiled and squeezed his hand. "Thank you, Yero. But I couldn't ask you to do that."

"You're not asking, I'm offering."

"Well, I couldn't accept," Elphaba reiterated firmly.

Fiyero hadn't really expected her to accept, but wanted her to know the offer still stood.

Then Nessa had an idea.

"Wait! Elphaba, what are you doing this summer?"

Elphaba wasn't sure. She couldn't stay at Shiz, she knew, and _Identity _would be closed until mid-August, so she'd have no work.

"I figured I'd have to go back to the orphanage for the summer," she admitted.

None of her friends liked that idea, as nice as Kistine was.

"Why don't you come to Munchkinland with Boq and I?" Nessa asked. "You can stay with one of us, and we'll help you look. See if we can find anything out."

Elphaba was surprised. "Are you sure? I don't want to put either of you out, and I'm sure you have other things you could be doing this summer," she protested.

"It's no trouble," Boq assured her. "You can stay with my family! My parents won't mind, and we have more room than Nessa does. If you can put up with my three younger sisters, we'd be happy to have you, I'm sure."

"And nothing we'd be doing is more important than helping you possibly find your birth parents," Nessa added.

Elphaba hesitated for just a moment. "If it's okay with your parents, Boq, I'd love to. Thank you," she said to them both.

Galinda was pouting slightly. "I don't want to miss out!" she protested, and Elphaba knew her best friend was still imagining the big, magic reunion between parents and child.

"Then come!" Boq suggested hastily, and Nessa and Elphaba rolled their eyes in unison.

"Subtle, Boq," Fiyero muttered, but Galinda didn't notice.

"I'd love to, but I can't," she sighed. "I have so many engagements already this summer."

"Me too," Fiyero added glumly. "Stupid royal court," he sighed and Elphaba squeezed his hand comfortingly.

"I'll keep you both posted," she assured them.

"And if anything big happens, you could always come out for a little visit, couldn't you?" Nessarose asked.

"Absolutely," Fiyero agreed immediately.

"Of course," Galinda nodded.

Nessa smiled at Elphaba. "See? And even if we don't find anything, we'll still have a lovely summer!"

Elphaba returned the smile. "I hope so."

On the Sunday morning, before they left to return to Shiz, Elphaba showed them some of her favourite sights around the city.

And when they returned to school, she tried her best to focus on their looming final exams. There were four weeks left of semester, and Elphaba desperately wanted to do well on her exams to prove that she deserved the scholarship they'd awarded her.

She couldn't afford to be distracted by what they might or might not discover that summer; but her friends were not so easily focused. Boq wrote to his parents pretty much as soon as they got back to Shiz, and when he mentioned it, Elphaba was wary.

"What exactly did you say?" she asked tentatively.

Boq understood her worry, and quickly reassured her.

"Don't worry, I told them the bare minimum of the truth. You're an orphan, we're friends, you have nowhere to go for the summer, and we have more room than Nessa and her mother do."

"I guess that's all true," Elphaba conceded, although it sounded so strange when summarised like that.

Then she had a thought. "Did you tell them I'm green?"

"Does that matter?" Fiyero scolded her gently.

"To me? A little. To other people? A lot," Elphaba replied matter-of-factly.

"I told them," Boq assured her. "I also asked them not to spread it around. Because if you're parents _are _in Munchkinland somewhere, I didn't think it was a good idea they find out about you from my mother or the grape vine."

"Good idea," Elphaba said gratefully.

Boq's parents replied within a few days, that they would be happy to host Elphaba for the summer. They made no mention of the fact that she was green, which Boq took as a sign of their agreement to not make a big deal of it.

The last night of the semester, as Elphaba and Galinda both were finishing their packing, Galinda turned to Elphaba and sighed.

"I wish I could come with you this summer, Elphie. To help."

Elphaba smiled. "Thanks, Glin. But I may not find out anything. This could be it," she said, trying to face facts.

Galinda shrugged. "Maybe."

Then she beamed. "But I feel really good about this summer for you, Elphie. I think something good's going to happen."

Elphaba smiled back and hugged her friend tightly. She wished she could be half as confident.

**AN. Merino wool is a real tye of wool, but I totally made everything about it all up. I just couldn't think of a fake name for a fake type of wool.**


	19. Chapter 19

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**Nineteen**

Elphaba thought Boq was exaggerating when he said that Munchkinland was mostly farmland.

He wasn't.

But Elphaba had to admit the province had its own beauty. She'd never seen a sky so blue in her entire life, and the Yellow Brick Road seemed more golden than yellow; and the grass seemed more vivid even than the emerald buildings of the Emerald City or Elphaba's own skin.

The countryside was filled with charming little country cottages and farmhouses, and Nessa and Boq took great delight in pointing out the sights and landmarks to Elphaba as they rode along in the carriage that they had hired to take them home.

"What's that?" Elphaba asked, pointing to a large, grand white house atop the hill.

Nessa didn't show any signs of discomfort or sadness, but her voice dropped slightly as she answered.

"The Governor's household."

Elphaba didn't know what to say. "Oh."

That was where Nessarose had been born, had been raised, had experienced her childhood. It had also been where her father had died, but Elphaba could tell from her face that the house held more happy memories than sad.

Elphaba wanted to say something comforting or complimentary, but she couldn't. It was a beautiful house in its architecture design, yes; but the reason Elphaba had been drawn to it and pointed it out wasn't because of its beauty, but because of the way all the hairs on the back of her neck rose when she saw it, and chills shot down her spine, making her shudder.

Nessa was looking forward to getting home and seeing her mother, who, she told Elphaba and Boq had been away for the past few weeks visiting family and friends in Gilikin. She had only gotten back to Munchkinland herself that morning.

"I can't wait for you to meet my mother," Nessa said to Elphaba.

Elphaba smiled slightly. "Does she know? That I'm green?"

"No," Nessa admitted. "I wasn't sure how to explain it in a letter. But I'll try and mention it before you meet her," she promised.

When the carriage finally came to a stop, Elphaba's gaze didn't go to Boq's home; but to the small cottage next door to it- Nessa's home.

Boq's father came out and helped his son take down Nessa's chair and help her into it before lifting off her luggage. He made lively conversation with both Nessa and Boq as he did so, asking about their latest semester.

Finally, Boq remembered Elphaba standing there awkwardly.

"Oh, Dad, this is our friend Elphaba Rozek. Elphaba, this is my father, Bfee."

"Welcome to Munchkinland, Elphaba," Bfee greeted her warmly, offering her his hand.

She shook it with a shy smile. "Thank you. And thank you for letting me stay with you."

"It's our pleasure," he assured her. "Boq, why don't you take Elphaba inside and introduce her to Mother and your sisters. I'll escort Nessa home."

"Sure, Dad," Boq agreed.

Nessa beckoned for Elphaba to bend down so that she could hug her. "I want to spend time with my mother tonight, but I'll come over tomorrow and we'll brainstorm a place to start," she told her.

Elphaba shook her head. "Take as much time as you need. We have all summer. Enjoy spending time with your mother."

Nessa beamed. "I will. You'll have to meet her soon."

"I'm sure I will," Elphaba replied.

Nessa and Bfee left, as Boq and Elphaba grabbed their bags and headed towards the house.

"How old are your sisters?" Elphaba asked as they walked down the front path.

"Dassah is fourteen, Iva is ten and Ria is eight. They're... well, they're pains in my ass, but I'm sure you'll love them," Boq grinned.

"They adore Nessa."

Elphaba smiled. "She's easy to adore."

Boq chuckled in agreement and opened the front door. "Hello?" he called out.

There was a pause, then a Munchkin woman bustled into the room, wiping her hands on an apron. She was shorter than Boq, and had a warm, kind face and rosy cheeks, although Elphaba assumed that was from the heat in the kitchen.

"Oh, good you're here!" she said, rushing to embrace her son.

Boq's face was bright red as he introduced Elphaba.

"Elphaba, this is my mother, Emese. Mom, this is mine and Nessa's friend Elphaba."

"Hello," Elphaba greeted her.

"Hello, Elphaba. Welcome to our home," Emese smiled.

"Thank you," Elphaba replied graciously.

"I'll show you to the spare room and give you a tour," Emese offered, but Boq interjected.

"It's okay, Mom, I can do that."

"Thank you, sweetheart. Don't forget to introduce Elphaba to your sisters. They're in their rooms at the moment."

Boq sighed. "Sure."

He beckoned to Elphaba and led her from the room. "So, living room, dining room and kitchen through there."

Elphaba nodded as they went upstairs, taking everything in. There was mess and chaos everywhere, but you knew as soon as you walked in the door that this was a _home, _and one full of love and warmth. It overwhelmed Elphaba a bit, who had never lived anywhere like that before.

"This will be your room," Boq said at the top of the stairs, pointing to the first room on the left.

"It's beautiful," Elphaba commented as she stepped inside. And it was, the room was bright and airy and had a view of the front garden and the streets.

She set down her bags and followed Boq back into the hall, who continued the tour.

"This is the bathroom. My room, my parent's room, Dassah's room, and this is Iva and Ria's room."

He tapped lightly on the door to Dassah's room, and opened the door at the faint "Come in!" that followed.

"Hey, I'm home," he greeted his little sister.

She snorted derisively, not looking up from her magazine she was reading. "Obviously."

Boq rolled his eyes. "Hello to you too. This is my friend Elphaba."

The teenager's eyes flickered up from her magazine to Elphaba and her eyes widened slightly.

"Hi," she said uncomfortably.

"Hi," Elphaba replied.

Boq swiftly pushed forward the awkward silence. "Ok, just wanted to say hi. See you at dinner."

"Sorry," he apologised to Elphaba once he'd shut the door.

She shook her head. "Used to it," she reminded him.

Boq nodded in admittance as he opened the door to Iva and Ria's room. The two girls were lying on the floor colouring and didn't even hear him open the door.

"Hi, kids."

They looked up and Ria was the first to react, but not how Elphaba had been expecting from two girls who hadn't seen their big brother in six months.

"Boq! Look at my picture!"

She held it up for him to see, and Elphaba could see it was a picture of a farm.

"Cool," Boq said approvingly.

"Can you tell her that there are no peacocks on farms?" Iva demanded of her brother, sounding superior.

Clearly, this had been a recent argument, and Boq replied with all the grace of a big brother not wanting to get involved with the matter.

"Well, if it's Ria's picture, she can have peacocks on it. By the way, this is my friend Elphaba. She's staying with us for the summer."

The two girls looked over at Elphaba.

"How are you green?" Ria wondered aloud, without even a hello.

"Ria!" Boq exclaimed.

"It's okay," Elphaba laughed, who had been asked that question her entire life, especially by new children in the orphanage.

"I don't know. I was born this way, I guess," she answered Ria's question, who seemed satisfied by that answer.

"Is Nessa coming for dinner?" Iva asked eagerly.

"Not tonight," Boq replied. "She wants to see her mother."

Both girls seemed disappointed, and Boq had to promise them they would see Nessa tomorrow.

Boq sighed as they left the girls to their colouring and headed downstairs. "They drive me mad."

Elphaba chuckled. "Well, they clearly missed you," she said teasingly.

Boq laughed. "Wait half an hour and they'll be all over me, wanting to tell me every detail of the past six months," he assured her.

He was right, within half an hour, all three sisters were surrounding him, all talking at once and shoving things in his face for him to look at. It was the same all through dinner, without the shoving of things in his face.

Elphaba loved every minute of it, but it made her slightly sad. The children at the orphanage and Kistine were no substitute for a family, and Elphaba wondered how her life would have been different to be raised by her parents. Would she have siblings? Would their meal times be just as loud and loving as this?

She knew she'd never have the answers to those questions; but she couldn't help but hold on to the hope that some of her other questions might be answered this summer.

**AN. And by the way, Boq's greetings from his sisters when he comes home is not to dissimilar from how my own siblings greet me when _I _come home. My sister's explanation is "when you lived here you were in your room all the time and we're so used to it we don't miss you."**

**Um, who feels the love here? **


	20. Chapter 20

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. And yeah... this chapter might seem really quick, but I tried to explain at the end.**

**And yes, I changed my profile pic. I got bored of the old one!**

**Twenty**

By the time Nessa came over the next day, Boq's sisters had warmed up to Elphaba. Which was helped by a small fact Boq had let slip to Iva.

"Is it true you're dating Fiyero Tiggular?" she asked of Elphaba over breakfast.

The whole table stilled and everyone looked to Elphaba, who blushed.

"Well, yes," she replied honestly.

Dassah's jaw dropped. "_You are?" _she exclaimed. "For how long?"

Elphaba had to think about that. "About five or six months, I guess."

"Do you miss him?" Ria asked and Elphaba laughed gently.

"I only saw him yesterday morning before we left Shiz," she reminded the little girl. "But I'm sure I will miss him."

"Do you love him?" Iva asked, and Elphaba flushed again.

"Yes," she answered quickly, and the two younger girls giggled.

"Alright that's enough," Bfee said as Dassah opened her mouth to ask another question. "Let Elphaba eat her breakfast."

Elphaba smiled gratefully at him.

When Nessa arrived, she had her own question for Elphaba.

"Would you like to come over for dinner tonight and meet my mother?"

Thankfully for Elphaba, this question was much easier to answer. "I'd love to," she replied.

"Boq, do you want to come too? Momma's making lasagne."

Boq's face lit up. "_Yes!_ Her mom's lasagne is the best," he told Elphaba.

"What time should we come over?" Elphaba asked.

"Around six is fine," Nessa assured her.

Emese entered the room and Boq quickly turned to his mother.

"Mom, Elphaba and I are having dinner at Nessa's tonight, okay?"

"Sure," Emese agreed. "And what are your plans for today?"

"I thought we could go into Munchkin City," Nessa suggested. "There's some bookstores there I know you'd love, Elphaba."

"Sounds perfect," Elphaba grinned.

"May we please borrow the buggy?" Boq asked his mother, who nodded in agreement.

"Yes. But be sure to be back by four. Your father will need it then."

So, the three spent the day in Munchkin City, sight-seeing and window shopping. Elphaba, still habitually cautious with her money and spending, caved and bought a book or two.

Elphaba could see the Munchkins staring and whispering as she passed by. She wished she could say it didn't bother her, but it did. But for the sake of Nessarose and Boq, both of whom looked embarrassed, she held her head high and pretended she could ignore them all.

"So, what's your mother like?" Elphaba asked Nessa over lunch, as they sat out in the sunshine.

Nessa paused for a moment in thought. "I don't know," she laughed slightly. "She's my mother. I've never had to describe her any other way."

Elphaba chuckled. "Well, tell me about her."

"Well, she's originally from Gilikin, from one of those old wealthy families… kind of like Galinda."

"A socialite," Boq supplied.

"Yes. And she met my father when she was eighteen and he was visiting Gilikin, they were married a year later and she moved here. My father was five years older than her, but Momma said it was love at first sight. Father became Governor soon after they were married, and then… they had my sister."

Elphaba recalled what Nessa had said about her sister, who had been born stillborn, and nodded sympathetically.

"And then I was born two years later," Nessa finished, forcing brightness into her voice.

"What does your mother do now?" Elphaba asked.

"She's an event co-ordinator," Nessa replied proudly. "She always threw the best parties when Father was alive; so it seemed only natural for her to plan other people's parties. She does benefits, weddings, parties… anything really. She's the best in Munchkinland. She's also done a bit of interior decorating."

"That sounds nice," Elphaba smiled. "It sounds like she and Galinda would get along really well."

Nessa and Boq laughed. "I think so, too," Nessa giggled. "But I'm sure she'll love you too."

So, just before six o'clock, Boq and Elphaba headed next door to Nessa's house. Nessa greeted them at the door, and ushered them into the small living room.

"Momma? Boq and Elphaba are here!" Nessa called out.

Boq took a deep breath. "Mmm… lasagne smells great, Mrs Thropp!" he said loudly.

A laugh met them in reply. "Boq, how many times do I have to tell you to call me Melena?"

A tall, thin woman entered the room. She looked to be just taller than Elphaba, and she had the same fine bone structure and colouring as Nessarose. She was smiling as she entered the room, but as her eyes landed on Elphaba, the colour drained from her face in a matter of seconds until it was ashen grey.

Before any of them could move or speak, she had fainted.

"Momma?" Nessa called out in shock, sounding panicked.

Boq hastily hurried to Melena's side and turned her over gently. "Nessa, do you have smelling salts?" he asked her.

Nessa looked too frightened to speak for a moment, but stammered to find her voice under Boq's insistent stare.

"Uh, in- in the bathroom cupboard m-maybe," she stammered.

"I'll go," Elphaba offered quickly, wanting to feel useful. "Where's the bathroom?"

"Down the hall on the right," Nessa replied, and Elphaba hurried off.

Elphaba found both the bathroom and the smelling salts easily, and when she returned to the living room, Boq had shifted Melena to the couch.

"Here," Elphaba handed Boq the smelling salts, and he waved them under her nose as Nessa watched on, still looking frantic.

A tense moment later, Melena's eyelids fluttered and opened.

"Momma? Are you okay?" Nessa asked worriedly. "What happened?"

Melena sat up slowly. "I- I'm fine, sweetheart. I- I just…"

Her gaze once again landed on Elphaba, and she seemed to lose her ability to speak.

"Maybe I should go," Elphaba said uncertainly.

"_No!" _Melena said quickly.

They all stilled, and then Melena seemed to remember something.

"Oh, the dinner!"

"I'll take care of it," Boq offered. "Do you want me to serve it or?"

Melena still appeared shaken. "Just- just wrap it up please. Keep it warm."

Boq nodded. "Sure. I'll do that, and clean up the kitchen. Shall I make some tea?"

She managed a faint smile. "Thank you, Boq. That would be lovely."

Boq smiled and left the room.

Elphaba felt more awkward than ever. "Are- are you sure you don't want me to leave?" she asked.

"No. Please, please stay," Melena asked quietly. "Please, sit down."

Elphaba did as requested, sitting in the armchair next to the couch. Nessa had her chair positioned so she was facing her mother, sitting upright on the couch.

"It's… it's Elphaba, isn't it?" Melena asked unsurely.

Elphaba nodded. "Yes."

She looked at her oddly. "That's a beautiful name."

Elphaba flushed slightly. "Thank you."

"And you're twenty-one?" Melena asked, more urgently.

Elphaba was startled by her tone. "Y-Yes. I turned twenty-one in April."

Melena turned a shade paler again and closed her eyes briefly.

"Momma, _what _is going on?" Nessa demanded, mystified by her mother's behaviour.

Melena cleared her throat and took a deep breath, turning to her daughter.

"Nessie, did you know that I was pregnant before I had you?"

Nessa frowned. "Yes, Boq's mother told me. That you'd had a baby girl two years before I was born, and she died at birth."

Melena nodded painfully. "Yes. The thing is… sweetheart… that story wasn't exactly true."

"What do you mean?" Nessa asked in a small voice.

Melena had tears in her eyes, and Elphaba wasn't sure why she was still in the room for this conversation.

"I did have a baby, a daughter. But she wasn't stillborn."

Nessa tensed. "She wasn't?"

Melena shook her head. "She- she was born… green."

It seemed as though there was no air in the room.

Nessa's wide eyes immediately flew to Elphaba, who had frozen in her seat.

Elphaba's throat and chest felt constricted. She couldn't even feel her lungs take in air, and was pretty sure they'd forgotten how to do that particular function. There were a million thoughts running through her brain at high speed, but she wasn't able to pick any discernible words or sentences out of the mass.

"I- I don't understand," Nessarose broke the silence in a small voice, sounding confused and injured.

Melena leaned over and took her hand. "Let me explain. To both of you," she said, turning her gaze to Elphaba for the briefest moment.

"When she- _you _were born, we weren't expecting you to be… to be green. Everyone was stunned. Frex; Omega, the midwife… they didn't tell me at first. I- I thought you were dead," her voice broke slightly as she addressed Elphaba.

"I couldn't hear you crying, and they weren't saying anything… I kept asking what was going on, and eventually… they said you were green. And then Omega held me up so I could see you, and there you were… green. But perfect," she whispered faintly, and Elphaba felt a large lump in her throat.

"You raised your little head and you looked right at me. And the next thing I knew, Frex and Omega had left the room and taken you with them. And when Frex came back… he said you were gone."

A tear ran down Melena's cheek.

"He sent you away. He told Omega to get rid of you… before I got to hold you or really see you," she sniffed, more tears beginning to fall.

"No," Nessa spoke up for the first time since Melena had begun her story. "Father wouldn't-"

Melena was pained, having to tell her daughter the truth about her father whom she had loved so much.

"Nessie, I'm sorry. But he did. He felt that… that having a green child would affect our reputation."

"So, he sent me away?" Elphaba questioned in a small voice.

Melena nodded slowly. "Yes. I- I tried. I begged him to find you, to get you back. I even went to see Omega, to try and find out where she'd taken you. But she wouldn't say. Frex had ordered her not to. She wouldn't say what he'd threatened her with, but she refused to say where you were. I wrote to the Orphanage and the Children's home in Munchkinland, but they said they hadn't seen a green-skinned child."

"I wasn't there," Elphaba said hoarsely. "I was taken to the Ernest Rusch's Children Home in the Emerald City. They found me on the doorstep."

Melena looked positively ill at that statement. "The doorstep?"

Elphaba nodded. "I was fine," she assured her. "I was perfectly healthy."

"Please go on," Nessa begged her mother.

With difficulty, Melena did. "When I couldn't find you, I thought maybe Omega had left you with a family. But when I never heard of anyone having a green child… I thought maybe... she'd killed you. But I was sure... I thought I would know, I'd _feel _it if you were dead. And a lot of the time, all I could hope was that you had been adopted. I wasn't sure how I'd go about finding you. And if I did... how would I ever explain to you what had happened? I was... so ashamed. For not stopping Frex or for not being able to find you. And the more time that went by, it seemed like you were further and further away. Frex seemed to think the problem would be solved once we had another child… a _normal _child, he said," she almost spat the word, as though it left an unpleasant taste in her mouth.

"When I fell pregnant with Nessa, he was worried the baby would be green. He insisted I chew milk flowers to prevent it happening again. But they caused me to go into labour too early, and…"

Nessa's eyes were wide. "Wait- you and Father always told me that's why… why I can't walk. Because I was born prematurely."

Melena nodded. "Yes. Nessa, I'm so, so sorry."

Elphaba was trying to make sense of everything she was hearing. "So… if you're my-my _mother, _that means…"

Nessa let out a soft gasp. "We're _sisters!" _

Melena smiled faintly. "Yes, I guess so."

Boq chose that moment to re-enter the room with tea.

"Tea, anyone?"

Elphaba rose from her seat and began to pace.

"Elphaba?" Melena questioned her, looking concerned.

Elphaba was shaking and she rubbed her arms to warm herself up. "This… this is a lot to take in," she said, her voice trembling.

Boq paused. "Have I missed something?" he asked the room at large.

"We found Elphaba's mother," Nessa replied.

Boq almost dropped the tray of tea. "Wait- _what?"_

Nessa nodded faintly, still looking shocked herself.

"That… that was really quick," Boq said, somewhat obviously.

Melena looked at them questioningly. "What do you mean?"

Nessa and Boq exchanged a glance. "The reason we invited Elphaba for the summer, was because she wanted to find out about her parents and we had enough reasons to suspect that they were here… in Munchkinland."

"Didn't really expect they'd be next door," Boq muttered.

Melena slowly rose and approached Elphaba. "There's not a day that's gone by in the past twenty-one years that I haven't thought about you," she said quietly, facing Elphaba and looking her in the eye.

Elphaba was finding it difficult to breathe again, and she definitely couldn't speak. There were tears in her eyes, that matched the tears in Melena's- her _mother's _eyes.

"You turned out more beautiful than I ever imagined," she said with difficulty.

Elphaba was fighting back her tears, but as Melena gingerly and hesitantly put her arms around her and embraced her, she broke down from sheer overwhelmingly shock of what had occurred in such a short space of time.

She was there being hugged by her mother.

But that was only the beginning.

**AN. Originally, this was going to be drawn out a lot more and they'd find Omega, who would make the connection between Elphaba and Nessa and _then _they'd confront Melena; but I realised that Melena couldn't really not notice a green girl living next door for too long. **

**Can you believe we only have another 6 chapters left? I can't! **

**But you'll be happy to know (well, maybe) that the next WICKED fic is ready to go! It's called "But for a Moment" and is an alternate ending to "May I not Lose you."**


	21. Chapter 21

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. I got so many reviews for the last chapter about people crying that I felt quite bad! I hoped everyone would like the chapter, but I didn't count on tears! So, to make it up to you, here is an early update!**

**Twenty-One**

Elphaba had really been in no mental or emotional state the night before to get more information or to discuss further the information Melena had given her.

Eventually, they had gotten around to eating dinner, but no one had really been hungry- except for Boq.

And then Elphaba had returned to Boq's and crawled into bed, falling asleep almost instantly.

After breakfast the next morning, Elphaba excused herself to Boq and his family, and went next door. Melena met her at the door and invited her into the living room.

"Nessa's still asleep, I don't want to disturb her," Melena explained, sitting in the chair Elphaba had been sitting in the night before.

"That's fine," Elphaba said, sitting somewhat awkwardly on the couch.

"Would you like some tea?" Melena offered, but Elphaba shook her head.

"I'm fine, thank you."

There was an awkward silence, which Melena finally broke.

"I'm sure you have many questions."

Elphaba nodded. "I do…" she trailed off, unsure how to address her.

Melena seemed to pick up on that. "Why don't you just call me Melena for now?" she suggested gently. She'd love nothing more than for her first-born daughter to refer to her as 'Mom', but didn't want to rush her.

It sounded fair to Elphaba, who agreed. "I don't really know where to start," she said, somewhat shyly.

"Perhaps I could start?" Melena asked. "Last night… Nessa and I spoke after you left. She told me about how you came here, what you'd figured out so far. And she mentioned that- that you have dreams?"

Elphaba was slightly startled, she hadn't given her dreams much thought the night before. Yet here was a chance to finally learn what they might mean.

"Yes. Just a few things… they've never really made sense."

She explained them in as much detail as she could remember, including the extra information that had appeared after her birthday, and when she'd finished, Melena let out a long breath.

"Wow. Um, okay… well, it was raining the night you were born. We had an incredible thunderstorm, the rain was torrential, so I'm guessing that would be the lightning you saw. Omega is an Antelope, so that's relatively self-explanatory. The balloon… I can't explain that. Or the sound of glasses, I'm sorry," she said apologetically.

Then she grimaced uncomfortably. "The voice you heard would most likely be Frex. And if the magic woman- Yackle, was it? If she's right and they all mean something to do with- with me… the falling sound… could also be Frex."

Elphaba frowned. "How do you-?"

She stopped as she realised what her mother meant. The falling sound could very well be linked to Frex's death. It was a lot to absorb, to suddenly find your mother and sister and realise your father was dead, especially when _he _was the one who had essentially sent her away. Elphaba was struggling to compute all the information and its implications.

"What's the song you mentioned?" Melena asked curiously.

Elphaba blinked, lost in thought for a moment. "Oh. Um… well, it's…"

Self-consciously, she hummed a small part of the melody and watched as Melena's eyes filled with tears once more.

"I wrote that," she said softly. "I wrote it when I found out I was pregnant. And I sang it to you… well, my stomach every single night until you were born."

Elphaba's eyes were huge. "I used to hear it every night in my sleep," she explained in a whisper. "It wouldn't go away, so I had to write it down. I used to call it my lullaby."

Melena beamed. "So did I."

Elphaba reached for her bag, dug through it, and pulled out the green bottle she'd been found with.

"This was left with me, at the orphanage. I wondered if it meant anything to you?"

Melena drew in a soft breath as she took the bottle from her. "I thought I'd lost this."

Elphaba's heart leapt. "So, it _does _mean something to you?"

Melena grimaced. "Yes. Oz, I don't know how to tell you this…" she muttered.

Elphaba was worried by her tone. "Tell me what?"

Melena got up and sat next to her, taking her hand in hers. "I don't know if this will make you feel better or worse," she said honestly. "But I think I owe you the truth."

"Ok," Elphaba said hesitantly.

"Frex… Frex was not your father," Melena told her, as gently as possible.

The news felt like another blow to Elphaba, on top of everything else.

"I'm _sorry_?" she demanded, her voice raising an octave or two in shock.

Melena reddened as she nodded. "Around the time you were… conceived… I had an affair. It was barely even that, it was just… a travelling salesman stopped by and stayed… for a few days. And then after… I realised I was pregnant."

"Did- did Frex _know?" _Elphaba asked, the thought suddenly occurring to her that if he had known, it could have served as another motive to give her away.

But Melena shook her head. "No. He didn't know."

"So, who _is _my father?"

Melena shrugged. "He was a travelling salesman, as I said. He was new in Oz, he said his name was Oscar. He stayed for a few days, and then he left. The- the bottle was his. It contained some kind of elixir in it, which we drank and he left behind the bottle when he left."

Elphaba was quiet for a long time. "Did you love him?"

Melena winced, but reminded herself that she had decided Elphaba deserved the truth. "No. I barely knew him. Frex was new at being Governor, and working all the time… I was lonely. And Oscar was there."

Elphaba had one more question. "What happened? The night Frex died?"

"Nessa said she told you I used to have a drinking problem?" Melena answered readily, and Elphaba nodded. "The truth is, after losing you, and then what happened to Nessa… I didn't cope very well. I felt guilty for not being able to find you, and then for agreeing to taking the milk flowers. The night it happened… it was your eighteenth birthday.

I knew. I _knew _it was your birthday, I never forgot. And that day was always worse for me, the pain seemed fresher. So, I drank more heavily. Frex was trying to help me upstairs, and I was furious at him. Because he'd given you away, and I'd lost you. I was so mad, I didn't want him touching me at all. So I pushed him. And he fell. It- it was an accident," she added, looking at Elphaba pleadingly.

Elphaba nodded faintly. "I believe you."

Melena looked at the bottle in her hands and then handed it back to Elphaba. "It means a lot to me. That you kept this."

Elphaba shrugged modestly. "It was the only thing I had of you," she explained quietly.

The two women sat there in silence for a few moments, and then Melena asked Elphaba questions about her life. Her childhood growing up in the orphanage, in the Emerald City, everything. She wanted to learn as much about the young woman her daughter had become as possible. Elphaba felt like she had been talking for hours before they heard sounds from the back of the house.

"Nessa's awake," Melena said, wiping her eyes. "I should let you two talk, I'm sure you both have lots to say to one another."

Elphaba nodded, she had been expecting they would have lots to say.

"Should I mention to Nessa… about my father?" she asked Melena hesitantly.

Melena paused then shook her head. "I think that's something I should tell her myself. Later."

Elphaba nodded. "Ok."

"I'll just go check on Nessa," Melena excused herself.

Elphaba leaned back against the couch and exhaled deeply, closing her eyes.

She'd been in Munchkinland for three days and suddenly she had a mother; a sister, who was suddenly her half-sister; a father who had ordered she be taken away against her mother's will, who had then become her step-father, who had been accidentally killed by her mother; and a mysterious father named Oscar, which had to be the weirdest name Elphaba had ever heard in her entire life.

Elphaba opened her eyes again as she heard the sounds of someone enter the room, and smiled somewhat shyly at Nessa as she wheeled herself into the room.

"Hi."

"Hi," Nessa replied, looking just as shy.

She wheeled her chair up to sit next to the couch and self-consciously tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

"How did you sleep?" Elphaba asked.

"Pretty good. It wasn't a long sleep, but I slept heavily. You?"

Elphaba nodded. "I don't even remember falling asleep." She chuckled faintly. "I remember thinking how Galinda is going to die when she hears everything that's happened, and the next thing I knew, I was waking up."

Nessa laughed, picturing Galinda's reaction and the awkwardness between the two was broken.

"This is so weird," Elphaba said honestly.

Nessarose was in full agreement. "I know. Do you think it's just a coincidence that we became friends, not knowing… everything; or was it a sign?"

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Nessa, with the dreams I have, I can't really not believe in signs."

"True," Nessa admitted.

Then she looked uncomfortable again. "Elphaba… can I tell you something?"

Elphaba was surprised. "Sure. What is it?"

Nessa blushed faintly as she looked down at her hands. "I- I was just thinking last night… that if this was going to happen… with my- _our_ father and everything…" she trailed off, and Elphaba tried not to flinch, thinking that it wasn't "their" father.

"I'm glad it's you," Nessa finished and Elphaba met her gaze with a slight frown.

"What?"

"I'm glad it's you, that's my sister. Because, well… we're friends. And I've never really said anything, but I really admire you Elphaba. You have so much strength, to be able to come to Shiz alone and work so hard not only at school but with everything. And to hold you head up high when people have been so horrendible…It's really inspiring to see."

Elphaba was touched at Nessa's words. She'd never thought of herself as strong, she'd just done what she had to in order to survive.

She was almost hesitant to say anything in response, but realised that Nessa was no longer her friend, but her _sister. _They were family, they shared bloodlines, and if she wanted a relationship with her sister- which she definitely did, she'd have to get used to making herself vulnerable.

So she leaned forward and hugged Nessa tightly, and she was grateful when the younger girl returned it with no hesitation.

"Thank you, Nessa," she said quietly. Then she smiled, "For what it's worth, I think you're the sweetest girl I've ever met. And I'm really glad I'm your sister, too."

Nessa positively beamed.

"Can I ask you something? What happens now? With our mother?"

Elphaba wasn't surprised by the question, it was only natural to ask, but she wasn't sure of her answer just yet.

"I think we're still getting to know one another," she said honestly. "Twenty-one years is a long time."

"Do you want a relationship with her? As a mother, I mean?"

"Honestly, in my head, I'd never got beyond finding out who my parents were," Elphaba admitted. "I think… I think I would. Or that is… I do. But it's going to take time. I'm not even sure if I really need a mother anymore," she said painfully.

Nessa squeezed her hand. "Everyone always needs a mother," she said gently and Elphaba smiled.

"It's not stupid?"

"Absolutely not," Nessa said firmly.

When Melena entered the room a little while later with a tray of tea, she was almost brought to tears again by the most beautiful sight she'd ever seen- her daughters, _both _of them, sitting together and talking.

She knew she'd have to talk with Nessa later to tell her the truth about Elphaba's father, and whilst she was worried about how that would affect her relationship with her youngest daughter; she was confident in hoping that Elphaba and Nessarose would have a strong relationship as sisters.

"So, what are we talking about?" Melena asked brightly, setting the tea down on the coffee table.

Elphaba sighed slightly. "We're trying to decide how we're going to tell other people."

Nessa nodded. "I offered to write to Galinda. As much as I know she'd want to hear it from Elphaba, I think it's more important for you to tell Fiyero," she said to her sister.

Melena's ears pricked up at that. "Fiyero?"

"Fiyero Tiggular. Elphaba's boyfriend," Nessa informed their mother, as Elphaba blushed.

"The Vinkun prince?" Melena asked, stunned.

"Yes," Elphaba confirmed.

Melena was torn. She knew Fiyero's reputation, as all in Oz did; but she'd never heard of him referred to as a _boyfriend _before, which told her there was more to this than the stories she'd heard of the scandalacious prince. Plus, she wasn't sure if she had yet earned the place to question Elphaba's relationships.

But she had only one question. "Is he good to you?"

Elphaba thought about Fiyero, with the horoscope, and everything he'd done since they'd been dating, in supporting her.

"I'd say he's too good to me," she answered softly.

Melena smiled. "Good."

**AN. Yep, I named the Wizard Oscar, going by the family trees at the beginning of _Out of Oz. _And for those worried- Fiyero will be there soon!**

**Also, recently I've been adding pics to my blog of clothes that Elphaba wore in some stories pre-my blog. So far I've done her 2 wedding dresses from FAR LONGER THAN FOREVER and the dress she wore for her and Fiyero's anniversary. If there's any others you'd like to see let me know and I'll see what I can do!**


	22. Chapter 22

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. The main 2 questions about the last chapter was 1. The Wizard and whether or not he'd be brought into the story. To which my answer is- you'll have to wait and see ;) And 2. Is Fiyero coming? To which I respond- yes. Soon.**

**And yes, Fiyero is on his way. **

**Twenty-Two**

Elphaba wrote to Fiyero that night, telling him absolutely everything that had happened. It took her fifteen pages to write everything but when she'd finished, she felt exhausted but exhilarated. Getting everything down on paper had been tremendously therapeutic and she felt so much lighter.

That feeling lasted until the following day, when Elphaba and Boq went to see Nessa and Melena. Elphaba knew immediately that Nessa knew the truth about Elphaba's paternity, because she was pale and quiet.

"It's just a lot to take in," she said to Elphaba when they were alone.

Elphaba nodded sympathetically. "I know."

Nessa shook her head. "I mean... I always thought that Momma and Father... even through everything, they seemed to love each other. And to find out now... I wonder if my father knew, even suspected the truth. I know Momma says he didn't know, but if he never said anything, there's no way to tell for sure."

Elphaba waited, unsure how to respond. Then Nessa met her gaze.

"But I want you to know that nothing's changed. I still mean everything I said yesterday."

Elphaba smiled, faintly relieved. She 'd be lying if she said she hadn't been worried about how Nessa would feel knowing they were only half-sisters, Elphaba being the product of an affair.

"I wrote to Fiyero last night," she changed the subject smoothly.

Nessa nodded. "I wrote to Galinda this morning."

"I was thinking you could fill Boq in? I need to talk to M-Melena about something."

Nessa agreed. "Sure. When I spoke to Momma, she said we could tell them everything. She thinks it's important that we're both surrounded by friends at the moment who know the truth."

Elphaba must have looked surprised and Nessa shrugged.

"She knows she's made mistakes, Elphaba. And she said after having to pretend you were dead for so long… she's done with secrets. Not from the people we trust."

"That's really nice," Elphaba said sincerely.

"What do you need to talk to her about?" Nessa asked curiously.

Elphaba hesitated, but decided to be honest. "My father."

So, as Nessarose talked to Boq in the living room, Melena and Elphaba were seated in the kitchen.

Elphaba felt uncomfortable bringing it up, but she had come to the decision the night before that she wanted to know more.

"I wanted to let you know, that I've been thinking. And… I can't believe I actually found you and Nessa and the way it happened… it sounds crazy," she began. "And I really want to get to know you."

Melena smiled tearily. "Good. I'm glad."

Elphaba took a deep breath. "But I also want to try and find my father."

Melena showed no visible reaction, so Elphaba pushed forward. "It's just… I've come this far, you know? But there's still things I don't know, bits of my dream that haven't been explained that I'm _sure _have something to do with him. I feel like I have to know who he is."

Her mother nodded slowly. "I think you should. He's part of your identity, of where you come from. And if you need to find him, you should."

"How?"

The two women turned to see Nessa and Boq entering the kitchen. It was Boq who had spoken, who looked a little sheepish.

"Sorry. But… how are you going to find him?"

"I haven't gotten that far," Elphaba admitted. "All I know is that he was a travelling salesman and his name's Oscar."

"Well, how many Oscar's can there be in Oz?" Nessa asked reasonably. "It's an awfully strange name, isn't it?"

"He may not even be in Oz anymore," Boq added pointedly.

Melena spoke up. "Can I just interject here? I'm not sure if it will help in anyway, but you have one more clue. The bottle was his," she reminded Elphaba gently, who pulled said bottle from her bag.

"I'm not really sure what this will help with," she admitted.

"Can I have a look at it?" Boq asked, and Elphaba handed it over.

"I've never seen anything like it," Elphaba said.

"I hadn't either," Melena added.

"It's glass," he noted.

"It's also green, what's your point?" Elphaba retorted.

Boq rolled his eyes. "My point is, why don't we take it to a glassblower and see if they can tell anything else about maybe where the bottle came from?"

Nessa looked surprised. "Boq, that's a really good idea!"

"Why do you sound so shocked?" Boq demanded.

"Are there any glassblowers in Munchkinland?" Elphaba asked.

"There's one in Big Appleton," Melena supplied. "That's only an hour and a half away."

"We could borrow my father's cart," Boq offered. "We could go over tomorrow, and ask?"

"OK," Elphaba agreed.

Nessa spoke up hesitantly. "There was one more thing I wanted to bring up. Elphaba… I know you were staying with Boq because he has more room, and this house _is _really small, but… I was wondering if you maybe wanted to spend the rest of the summer here? I don't mind sharing my room if you don't, and that way, we could get to spend more time together. The three of us."

Elphaba wasn't sure, but she wasn't opposed to the idea, and she could tell it would mean a lot to Nessa.

"I'd love that, Nessa," she said softly, and Nessa beamed.

Then she turned to Boq. "Is that okay?"

"Sure," Boq agreed readily, surprised Elphaba would even ask. "My parents will totally understand."

Elphaba blinked. "Are we telling your parents?"

"I think we should tell them the basic truth," Melena said hastily. "I think that's all anyone really needs to know."

It was safe to say that Bfee and Emese were stunned to say the least, to learn that Elphaba was, in fact, Melena's long-lost daughter. Melena had told her neighbours herself, and admitted that Frex had given the baby away, ashamed of her abnormal skin colour.

And so Elphaba moved from Boq's house to the house next door. Melena had set up a mattress on the floor of Nessa's bedroom, and although with Nessa's chair it was more than a little squished, both girls were happy.

"Are you going to come with us tomorrow, Momma?" Nessa asked over dinner.

Melena paused and looked at her daughters. "Would you like me to come?" she asked, addressing Elphaba more than Nessarose.

"I would," Elphaba admitted, a little nervously.

Melena smiled reassuringly. "Then I'll come."

They left early the next morning, after breakfast. Boq showed up with the cart, which Bfee had easily agreed to lend them for the day, and they set off for Big Appleton.

Munchkinland was proving to be somewhat of a culture shock for Elphaba. Having grown up in the Emerald City, then going to Shiz, which was still a relatively large town; the small towns and farmland of Munchkinland was a huge change. She found it beautiful, but she missed the hustle and bustle of the city.

Big Appleton was, well… _big. _It was the largest city in Munchkinland, Nessa informed her, even larger than Munchkin City, although Munchkin City was bigger in terms of population.

"Do we know where the glassblowers is?"

Melena spoke up. "I only know there is one. I bought a glass figurine at a market a few years ago, and the woman running it was telling me that her husband had made it and they lived in Big Appleton."

Elphaba was immediately overcome with the fear that they had closed, or moved and their journey had been for nothing. But she said nothing, trying to stay positive.

When they finally reached Big Appleton, Melena had Boq stop so she could ask for directions. The three young adults in the cart waited tensely, and were rewarded when Melena returned with a smile.

"It's only a few blocks away," she assured them, sounding rather relieved herself.

"Are we all going in?" Nessa asked as they headed off to the store.

Elphaba spoke up. "Actually, I'd prefer to go in alone, if that's okay?"

"Of course it is," Melena comforted her. "We'll wait in the cart."

The glass store, they eventually found, was a large building with a beautiful display of glassware in the front windows.

Leaving Melena and Nessa to admire them, and Boq waiting patiently in the cart, Elphaba took a deep breath and entered the store.

There was a small Munchkin man behind the counter and he was polishing a few glasses as he looked up and saw Elphaba standing there. He froze at the sight of her, and Elphaba winced, wishing she'd thought to bring in Melena or Nessa with her- someone who wouldn't be balked at.

"Can- Can I help you?" the man said finally.

"I hope so," Elphaba replied, slowly approaching the counter. "See, I have this bottle- a glass bottle. It's er… a family heirloom, and we're trying to find out more about it. I was hoping you might be able to tell me something about it?"

The Munchkin considered her for a moment. "I can certainly try and help," he said, and Elphaba let out a long breath of relief.

"May I see the bottle please?"

Elphaba pulled it out of her bag and handed it to the man. He then proceeded to examine it carefully, holding it up to the light and other things Elphaba couldn't have told you what they were for.

"This is very unusual glass," he spoke, and Elphaba's heart leapt.

Was that a good thing or a bad thing?

"It's so unusual that most glassblowers wouldn't be able to help you."

"But you can?" Elphaba pressed eagerly.

The man sighed. "I can't really tell you anything specifically about the glass. But you're quite lucky that you came to me. You see this mark? On the bottom?"

Elphaba hesitantly took the bottle back from him and turned it upside down so she could see the bottom. Squinting at the glass bottom, she saw what the man was referring to.

"It's… it's a heart?" she asked unsurely.

"It's a broken heart," he corrected her.

Elphaba didn't get it. "So… what does that mean?"

"Every glassblower has their own symbol in order to sign their work- like a signature," he explained. "This broken heart is the signature of Turtle Heart."

"Turtle Heart?" Elphaba frowned.

"Yes. It's quite rare to see one of his works in these parts, actually. He usually keeps his works within the Quadlings."

Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "The Quadlings? That's where he is?"

The man nodded. "Last I heard, but that was oh… five years ago now."

Elphaba's heart sank. There was no way she would be able to go searching through the Quadlings for this Turtle Heart, even if it did mean perhaps finding the man who was her father.

"Thank you," she said to the Munchkin man graciously, placing the bottle back in her bag.

"Well, what happened?" Nessa demanded eagerly when Elphaba met them back outside.

"It was made by a glassblower in the Quadlings," Elphaba told them. "His name was Turtle Heart."

Nessa and Boq's faces fell. Melena didn't want to give up just yet.

"We could write to the Quadlings? Try and find him?"

Elphaba shook her head. "No, it's fine. I think this is the end of the road."

"Are you sure?" Melena asked gently.

Elphaba nodded and smiled faintly. "Yes, I'm sure. I guess it's a sign it wasn't meant to be," she shrugged.

She didn't consider the fact that perhaps it was just a matter of things falling into place.

**AN. Yeah, I needed a glassblower… so I put Turtle Heart in it. Those who have read the book will know it's a very different context here.**


	23. Chapter 23

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. This chapter is dedicated to the lovely David Harris who is doing his last 2 shows as Fiyero with the Australian production of WICKED, currently in South Korea today. After over a year and a half, he's leaving. I've seen David in 5 shows and he is an incredible Fiyero, and one of the nicest guys I've ever met. **

**Twenty- Three**

A week and a half later, a grand carriage rode into Munchkinland early one afternoon, and rode through the streets until it pulled up outside the Thropp cottage.

Nessarose and Boq were in the living room, and as the door opened and the passengers stepped out, Nessa smiled knowingly.

"Elphaba! You might want to come see this!" she called out in the direction of the kitchen.

Elphaba was in the kitchen cleaning up after lunch with Melena. The two usually cleaned up after meals together, mostly because Elphaba wanted to feel useful and both mother and daughter had found there was a kind of peace in doing the small task together. As though they were bonding and getting to know one another better, without really having to talk- because neither was a hundred per cent sure what to say.

At Nessa's call, Elphaba paused and exchanged a frown with her mother.

"What in Oz's name?" she muttered, leaving the room.

Melena was three steps behind, and only heard a gasp of surprise before Elphaba positively bolted to the door.

"What's going on?"

Nessa was smiling. "We have visitors."

Peering out the window, Melena was just in time to see her eldest daughter fling herself into the embrace of a tall, handsome, blonde boy.

"Is that?"

"Fiyero Tiggular," Boq confirmed.

"And that's Galinda," Nessa pointed out the perky blonde girl, who was waiting impatiently to greet Elphaba.

Outside, Elphaba pulled away from Fiyero's hug and stepped away, turning to Galinda, who hugged her tightly.

"What are you two _doing _here?" she demanded happily.

Galinda explained. "Well, when we got yours and Nessa's letters, Fiyero wrote to me and said he was going to come here and would I like a lift? I said yes, of course; so he detoured via Gilikin before coming here."

"But.. you both had plans this summer. And you're here?"

Fiyero laughed. "Of course we're here. Fae, you're going through something _huge. _Where else would we be?"

The way he said it, in such a casual manner as though it were obvious, thrilled Elphaba to her very toes. In response, she leaned up and kissed him. She hadn't realised until she saw him how much she'd missed him.

Galinda thought it was sweet, but she didn't really want to have to watch. "Ok, this is lovely, Elphie, but I might go say hi to Nessa."

Elphaba pulled away from Fiyero, blushing slightly. "I'm sure she'll be happy to see you. Boq's here too at the moment."

Fiyero took Elphaba's hand. "I'll come too."

Elphaba led them towards the house and into the living room. Nessa and Boq were there with similar smirks, as Melena was standing in the doorway, looking guarded. This was her first experience at this, Nessa was yet to have a serious dating experience that reached the point of introductions between mother and boyfriend.

And it was a lot more complicated with Elphaba.

"Hello, Galinda, Fiyero," Nessa greeted them.

"Hi, Nessa. Sorry for the lack of notice. It was kind of a spur of the moment thing," Fiyero apologised.

"Don't be silly," Nessa replied. "It's great to see you. Right, Boq?"

Boq was currently busy basking in the beauty of Galinda and not really listening. At the sound of his name, he turned red and stammered.

"Oh, y-yes. So g-g-great to see you. Er, both of you," he added as an afterthought, tossing the later statement in Fiyero's direction.

He and Elphaba supressed a smile with difficulty, and Galinda was oblivious to Boq's reaction.

Nessa took charge of introductions, to make it a little easier for Elphaba.

"Galinda, Fiyero, this is our mother, Melena. Momma, this is Galinda Upland of the Upper Uplands; and this is Prince Fiyero Tiggular."

"Just Fiyero," Fiyero said quickly, stepping forward to greet Melena.

"It's nice to meet you both," Melena nodded cordially.

Fiyero was just as inexperienced at meeting the parents as Melena was at meeting the boyfriend; so both were a little awkward.

"So, where are you staying?" Nessa asked them.

"There's an inn in town, isn't there?" Fiyero asked. "I thought it made sense to get two rooms there."

"You could stay with me!" Boq blurted.

As all eyes turned to him, he hurried to explain. "We have a spare room that's now empty because Elphaba's staying here."

"And we have the couch," Nessa offered. "Galinda could stay here and Fiyero could stay with Boq?"

Elphaba swore Nessa added that part just to tease Boq, and his facial expression was enough to make her almost start laughing.

"That would be great, thanks," Fiyero said to Boq gratefully.

"If you don't mind," Galinda added to Melena, who smiled.

"That's fine with me," she assured her.

Boq's parents were surprised at the sudden appearance of visitors, let alone the Vinkun prince, but had no problem with letting him stay there. Of course, Boq's sisters were beyond thrillified with this news, which was enough to send Elphaba into a fit of laughter.

When Galinda and Fiyero had settled in, Fiyero quietly suggested to Elphaba that they go for a walk. Elphaba, who was aching to talk to him, agreed and they left.

"I still can't believe you're _here,_" she said to him as they walked.

Fiyero squeezed her hand. "As soon as I got your letter, I knew I had to come."

"What about your parents?" Elphaba asked anxiously. She knew the king and queen couldn't have been happy about their son leaving.

"They weren't too happy," Fiyero admitted, recalling the blazing argument he'd had with his father before leaving. "But I don't care. I was worried about you."

She looked up at him in surprise. "You were?"

"I am," he corrected.

They came to a park, that was otherwise empty. Fiyero led her over to a bench and sat down.

"How are you doing?" he asked gently.

Elphaba struggled for a moment, not knowing what to say. "It's hard," she admitted. "I love Nessa, I do. She's so sweet, and she was really the first person to be somewhat friendly to me at Shiz. But now, she's my _sister. _I have no idea how to be a sister, or a daughter…"

"Hey," Fiyero interjected. "You didn't know how to be a girlfriend either, but you've mastered that."

Elphaba looked at him in exasperation and he chuckled.

"Sorry. Trying to help. It's true though."

Elphaba ignored him. "It's just… I never really thought about what would happen after finding out who my parents were. I never expected to walk into anything so complicated. And Nessa… I screwed up her whole life without even being there."

"Where did you get that idea?" Fiyero asked sharply.

Elphaba laughed hollowly. "Are you kidding me? Fiyero, _think_ about it. Frex insisted Melena eat milk flowers when she was pregnant with Nessa, so she wouldn't turn out like me, and she was born not being able to walk; Melena had a drinking problem for years because Frex gave me away; and that led to him dying! Nessa was so close to her father, and he _died_ because of what happened."

Fiyero cupped her face in both his hands. "That all leads back to Frex, not to you," he said sternly.

Elphaba just met his gaze calmly. "If I hadn't been born though, none of it would have happened," she whispered.

Fiyero could tell that she'd been thinking about this, maybe since she'd first discovered the truth, and it horrified him.

"Elphaba, listen to me," he told her softly. "I've only been in a room with your mother for a few minutes, but believe me when I tell you there is absolutely no way she blames you for anything. She is _so _happy to have you back in her life. And Nessa? Can't you see how excited she is? She pointedly refers to you as her sister in every other sentence, which is kind of adorable. I don't think she resents you for anything."

Elphaba couldn't help but smile, but her eyes fell to her lap. "She doesn't yet."

Fiyero did the only thing he could think of. He drew her towards him and kissed her deeply. Elphaba wasn't really ready for it, but she didn't fight it, slipping her arms around his shoulders and moving closer to him on the bench.

When he pulled away finally, he tenderly tucked a lock of hair behind her ear.

"Fae, I know this is hard for you. And that it's going to take time to adjust to everything, and it's bound to be scary. But I promise you, neither Nessa or your mother are ever going to resent you. You haven't _done_ anything. People make choices, and their choices have consequences. Sometimes good, and sometimes bad. But that doesn't make anything your fault."

"I just don't want to screw this up," Elphaba whispered fearfully.

Fiyero shook his head. "You won't. And eventually, you'll have a normal mother-daughter and sisterly relationship. You and Nessa will fight over shoes, and your mother will drive you crazy. But that doesn't mean you've screwed anything up."

Elphaba laughed slightly. "I'm not really into shoes."

He grinned and kissed her again lightly. "Books then."

They continued walking until they could see the Governor's house atop the hill.

"So, that's where..."

Elphaba nodded. "That's where I was born. Where Nessa was born, where Frex died... I get chills just looking at it," she admitted and Fiyero wrapped his arm around her.

They eventually returned to the cottage in time for dinner, and Melena had invited Boq and Fiyero to stay for the meal.

"So, what happens next?" Galinda asked Elphaba as they ate.

"What do you mean?" Elphaba replied.

"Well, with your father. Are you going to try and find him?"

Elphaba exchanged a brief glance with Nessa before answering. "We tried. It turns out the bottle that was left with me belonged to him. We took it to a glassblowers last week to see if they could tell us anything more about it that might tell us where to look."

"And?" Fiyero pressed gently.

"It was made by a glassblower named Turtle Heart in the Quadlings," Nessa answered.

"So, when do we go to the Quadlings?" Fiyero asked casually.

They all turned to him, silence falling around the table.

"What?" Elphaba frowned. "Fiyero, we can't just _go _to the Quadlings."

"Why not?" he countered. "I have a carriage, we can find somewhere to stay when we get there. What's stopping us?"

She looked at him in fond exasperation. "The money for that-"

"Let me worry about the money," he cut her off.

Elphaba chuckled in faint disbelief. "Yero, I can't-"

Fiyero interrupted her once more. "Elphaba, I've offered to pay before, remember? I told you, anything you need, I'm here for. And if you really want to try and find your father, we'll go the Quadlings and try and find him."

Elphaba could only squeeze his hand wordlessly, unable to speak.

"Is that a yes?" Galinda questioned eagerly.

"It's a yes," Elphaba managed to whisper hoarsely.

After dinner, Galinda dragged Elphaba and Nessa off to look through the luggage she'd brought with her to see if it would be suitable for the Quadlings, or whether a shopping trip was in order before leaving.

"I don't know what good you think I'm going to be here," Elphaba informed her friend reasonably as she and Nessa followed her.

"We'll help clean up," Boq offered to Melena.

"Thank you," she said to the Munchkin boy graciously.

Boq picked up a few plates and took them into the kitchen. Left alone, Melena turned to Fiyero.

"That's a very generous offer you made, Fiyero," she said politely.

Fiyero smiled faintly. He had a suspicion as to what was going through Melena's mind, and decided the best thing to do was to get everything out in the open.

"Look, Mrs Thropp, you don't know me. And I understand you're really just getting to know Elphaba; and it must be very strange for you to suddenly have a twenty-one year old daughter with a boyfriend when you last saw her as a baby. And I'm sure you've heard certain things about me in the past-"

"I've heard stories," Melena interrupted.

Fiyero nodded. "Yes. But the thing is, I honestly love your daughter. And if this is important to her, and will make her happy, I want to do as much as I can to help make that happen."

Melena regarded him for a long moment.

"Are you sleeping with her?" she asked suddenly.

"No, ma'am," Fiyero replied, not even reacting to the question.

"But you love her?"

"Yes. Very much."

"Is it serious?"

That question was harder to answer, but Fiyero did his best. "We haven't really talked about the future too much, we've only been dating a few months. But I can tell you that when I think about my immediate future, Elphaba is in it."

Melena paused. "What exactly is your definition of 'immediate future'?"

Fiyero shrugged. "Months, not years. But I'm not ruling out the possibility of years," he said solemnly.

"What about your parents?" Melena asked, not wanting to show that she was impressed by his answers so far.

"They don't really approve," Fiyero admitted. "But they don't know Elphaba. And honestly, I don't care."

Melena paused thoughtfully. She knew that if Fiyero and Elphaba ever _did _decide to get married, they'd need his parents blessing; and if they disapproved of Elphaba, that could cause trouble and possible heartache for her daughter. But she genuinely believed that he loved Elphaba and there seemed no denying that the prince made her happy, from the little Melena had seen.

"Alright then," she said finally, and picked up some glasses to carry to the kitchen.

Melena decided not to accompany the group to the Quadlings. She felt this was Elphaba's journey and she trusted Boq and Fiyero to take care of the girls. Besides, she knew they would return to Munchkinland after completing their business in the Quadlings, anyway.

The group left two days later, and began their journey to Oz's southern province. The Quadling country was known for being relatively swampy and undeveloped; but they were reputed for their beautiful and exquisite arts and crafts, such as glassware, painting and jewellery, which was how they made most of their revenue.

When they finally reached the Quadlings, Fiyero found them a motel to stay in. It was a five-star for the Quadlings, but would have been a three-star at best for what Galinda and Fiyero were used to, but they didn't complain or comment.

"I could do with some more closet space, but it's an alright room for a few days," Galinda said, looking around.

Elphaba could tell her best friend was putting on a brave face for her sake, and appreciated the gesture.

"Thanks, Galinda," she said warmly, and hugged her.

Galinda chuckled. "You're welcome, Elphie."

"I like the view," Nessa commented.

Galinda looked at them and shook her head in amazement. "I still can't believe you two are really _sisters,_"

"Half-sisters," Elphaba corrected.

"Sisters," Nessa reiterated firmly, and Elphaba smiled at her.

"Are you going to change your name?" Galinda asked and Elphaba frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"Are you going to change your name?" Galinda repeated.

"To what?" Elphaba asked in bewilderment.

"To Thropp," Galinda answered simply.

Elphaba and Nessa exchanged a glance.

"I hadn't thought about it," Elphaba said honestly.

"Or," Galinda continued. "You could wait until you find your father and take _his _last name."

"Elphaba Thropp," Nessa said aloud thoughtfully. "It has a nice ring to it."

Elphaba chuckled. "I'll consider it," she promised. "But for right now, I'm happy being Elphaba Rozek."

"Maybe one day you'll be Elphaba Tiggular," Galinda said slyly, and Elphaba threw a pillow at her.

When they met Boq and Fiyero in the lobby, Fiyero was excited.

"I asked at reception if they'd ever heard of Turtle Heart, and they said he has a workroom in his house, which is about ten minutes away."

Elphaba gaped at him. "Really? That's amazing!"

"Do you want to go see him now?" Boq asked eagerly.

Elphaba shrugged. "Sure, may as well. The sooner we find out, one way or another, the sooner we can leave."

It was agreed, so the group headed over to Turtle Heart's workroom, following the directions Fiyero and Boq had gotten from the people in reception. They had decided to walk, given that it wasn't far and it was still light.

It was a small, old looking hut, with a wide open porch. As they approached, they saw an enormously tall, black man, who was hanging a few beautiful and delicate looking glass wind chimes on the porch.

"Excuse me?" Elphaba asked when they were within earshot.

The man turned, and Elphaba was surprised when he didn't even blink at her skin colour.

"May I help you?"

"Are you Turtle Heart?"

He smiled. "Yes, Turtle Heart. Would you like to buy something?"

Elphaba drew the green bottle out of her bag once more. "Actually, I was hoping you can help me with something else. I'm trying to find the person who may have owned this bottle, and I was told that you made it."

Turtle Heart took the bottle from her and carefully examined it. "Yes. I made this. Special Order."

Elphaba's heart began to beat faster in apprehension. "It would have been a long time ago- twenty-one years at least," she said.

He nodded. "Yes, it was a long time, large order. Specially designed."

"Do you happen to remember who ordered them?" she asked.

Turtle Heart looked at her and answered calmly and readily. "Oscar Diggs."

"Oscar Diggs?" Elphaba repeated, clutching Fiyero's hand tightly. Was this her father?

But she wasn't expecting the next bombshell. "Yes. I believe he is more recently known as the Wizard of Oz."

Elphaba's eyes widened. She heard Galinda gasp, but she was aware of nothing more as the room spun and her legs gave way, and she fainted in Fiyero's arms.

**AN. I have a new poll on my profile- please vote!**

**And I'm also uploading a two-shot today, called "IF I LET YOU GO", please read and review! **


	24. Chapter 24

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. Sorry for those who want to see more of Turtle Heart- that's all you get! **

**Twenty-Four**

Elphaba had to feel sorry for Melena. If it was hard for her to hear and comprehend the news; she couldn't imagine what it must be to hear that the travelling salesman you had a brief affair with twenty-one years ago and had conceived a child with, was now the ruling leader of all of Oz.

When they'd first returned from the Quadlings, Elphaba had still been somewhat in shock. It had fallen to Nessarose to break the news to her mother about just who exactly Elphaba's father was.

Melena had taken the news relatively well, her main concern was how Elphaba was taking it. And the main debate was how to move forward. They were all worried about how Elphaba was dealing with the news, and each had their own theory on what to do next.

Galinda thought the best thing to do was to give Elphaba time to sort through her own thoughts and feelings on the matter. Fiyero had protested against that, and had been forced to admit Elphaba's fears about her relationships with Melena and Nessa.

"She needs to talk everything through with someone, or she gets all freaked out," he insisted, two days after they'd returned to Munchkinland.

"Trust me, Elphaba seems confident, and she can be; but when it comes to stuff like this, she doubts herself too easily."

"What exactly are you suggesting?" Nessa asked, who had gotten rather upset at the idea that Elphaba felt she was to blame for all the misfortunes in her own life.

"We just need to talk it out with her, and help her come up with a plan of action."

"What plan of action?" Boq asked. "What can she do with this?"

"Can't she write to the Wizard?" Galinda suggested.

"And say what, 'I'm your illegitimate daughter from twenty-one years ago'?" Fiyero asked sarcastically.

Melena spoke over them. "Guys, I appreciate your concern for Elphaba, but she may not want to do anything."

Nessa agreed with her mother. "All she wanted to know was who her father is, she hadn't decided if she wanted a relationship with him or not."

"But he's the _Wizard _of _Oz!" _Galinda stressed. "Elphie's been dreaming of working for him since… forever. She told me. She picked her whole course at Shiz based around the hope of working for him."

Melena interjected once more. "I think that's irrelevant at the moment. And yes, she wanted to know who he is, but she also wanted to know who he was... if that makes sense."

"He's the Wizard of Oz," Galinda said as though it was obvious.

"That's his title, it's not who he is," Fiyero corrected her.

Melena agreed with him. "If Elphaba feels she still has questions, she may want to try and meet him."

"And then we're back to square one," Boq spoke up. "How does that happen?"

Nessa looked uncertain. "I feel like if people find out the Wizard has an illegitimate daughter… I don't know how that will affect his reign over Oz."

"From a political viewpoint, it could be bad," Melena added.

"But where do we go from here?" Galinda asked.

"We go to the Emerald City."

They all turned to see Elphaba standing in the doorway to the living room. She had bags under her eyes, and seemed a few shades paler than usual.

Without saying anything, Galinda scooted over on the couch to make room between her and Fiyero. Immediately, Elphaba walked over and sat down in the space; leaning into Fiyero as Galinda took her hand in a silent sign of comfort.

"What were you saying, Fae?" Fiyero asked gently.

Elphaba's voice was tired as she answered. "I think I need to go to the Emerald City. Because you're right," she said, looking at Melena.

"I still have questions… even though the hot air balloon from my dream makes sense now," she said, recalling the story of how the Wizard had come to Oz- in a hot air balloon.

"And I have no idea how one goes about _seeing _the Wizard… I grew up in the City and never heard of anyone seeing him. But it makes more sense to do it from there than here. By the time any letters get there and back… it could be too late. We only have a month left of vacation, and I want to try and get this sorted before we go back to Shiz."

It made sense and Fiyero was quick to support her. "We can stay in my family's apartment, it's large enough for all of us," he suggested.

"And it would be quicker to return to Shiz from there," Galinda added.

Elphaba looked at her mother. "Would you come? Not just for this, but…. I'd like you to meet Kistine. She pretty much raised me."

Melena smiled encouragingly. "Of course I can come."

So, once again, they all packed up and left Munchkinland, this time for the Emerald City. Melena had only been once, years ago, before she was married to Frex, and she marvelled at the changes.

She was also impressed by the lavish apartment owned by Fiyero's family. Fiyero and Boq were sharing one room, Melena and Nessa in another, and Galinda and Elphaba took the third.

And Elphaba wasted no time once they arrived, writing immediately to the Wizard's palace, requesting an audience with the Wizard.

"What reason did you give?" Nessa asked her sister curiously.

"I just said it was of a personal nature," Elphaba replied. "I don't know who opens his mail and I didn't think we should broadcast the news."

"Good idea," Melena agreed.

She was feeling rather nervous, she and Elphaba would be going to the orphanage shortly to meet Kistine. Elphaba had written to Kistine from Munchkinland to fill her in on everything, and Kistine had suggested the meeting. Melena wanted to meet the woman who had raised her daughter, but it was a nerve-wracking idea at the same time.

The others were planning to go out sightseeing and shopping whilst Elphaba and Melena did that, and then Elphaba would join them for dinner, leaving Melena and Kistine to talk. That had been Melena's request, wanting some one-on-one time to learn more about her daughter's childhood.

"Why am _I_ nervous?" Elphaba demanded of Galinda before they left and Galinda only laughed.

"It will be fine, Elphie. But good luck."

"Why do I need luck, if it's going to be fine?" Elphaba retorted, and Galinda rolled her eyes as she left.

"This is it," Elphaba said, as they stood outside the orphanage a short time later.

Melena stared up at the building, trying to imagine her daughter growing up here. Just the mental images broke her heart.

"Ok, let's go."

Elphaba knocked on the door, and when it was opened, allowed herself to be hugged tightly by Kistine before taking a deep breath.

"Kistine, this is my mother, Melena Thropp. This is Kistine," she introduced them.

Kistine smiled warmly. "It's so nice to meet you, Melena. Please, come in."

She showed them into her parlour and insisted Elphaba re-tell the story in more detail of everything she'd found out until now. The only thing Elphaba didn't mention was exactly who her father was, she left it only that he was a travelling salesman named Oscar.

"What a strange name," Kistine mused and Elphaba and Melena exchanged a look.

Forty-five minutes later, Elphaba left and went to join the others for dinner.

"How'd it go?" Nessa asked when she arrived and had sat down.

"I think it went well. They seemed to be getting along when I left," Elphaba replied.

Melena returned to the apartment two hours later. She and Kistine had talked for a long time, and Kistine had been happy to share as much detail as Melena wanted on Elphaba's childhood. And Elphaba was surprised when Melena came straight up to her and embraced her for a long moment.

"What was that for?" she asked, faintly confused.

Melena smiled. "Because you are an exceptional young woman and I'm very proud of you."

Elphaba hadn't known what to say to that.

Meanwhile, her letter to the Wizard went unnoticed and unanswered; as did all the subsequent letters she sent.

By the time they had two weeks left before semester would begin, Elphaba was annoyed and impatient. She had written to Idonea and Alun, telling them a brief overview of the situation, and they knew she would not be available for work until semester began. And that was another thing that annoyed her.

"I'm losing work," she complained to Fiyero. "I know I don't need it as badly as I did last year, but I like it. And I do need to buy my books for this semester. I guess I have the money, but I like knowing I have a steady income."

"Maybe you're going about this the wrong way," Fiyero suggested.

"What do you mean?" Elphaba frowned.

"Well, you've been keeping your letters vague so no one knows the truth, which is still a good idea. But maybe you need to keep it vague, but with a really big clue so he'll know what you're referring too."

Elphaba looked surprised. "That's a really smart idea, Fiyero!"

"You don't need to sound so shocked," Fiyero protested.

Elphaba laughed and kissed him. "Sorry," she apologised.

So Elphaba sat down and wrote yet another letter to the Wizard. When she'd finished, she went over the living area where Fiyero and Boq were playing hangman.

"Sorry to interrupt this very important activity," she said dryly, sitting down next to her boyfriend.

"But can you tell me if this sounds okay?"

Fiyero put down his pencil. "We'll forgive you. I'm only three steps from being hung anyway."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Ok. Listen to this."

She cleared her throat and began to read.

"_Your Ozness,_

_My name is Elphaba Rozek and I am twenty-one years old. _

_I am writing to you to request an audience with yourself, regarding a mutual friend of ours- Melena Thropp._

_It is through Melena that I have into possession of this item, which I believe belongs to you, and I am now returning it to its rightful owner._

_Sincerely yours,_

_Elphaba Rozek."_

Boq understood what Elphaba was referring to immediately.

"You're going to send him the bottle?"

Elphaba shrugged. "If it gets me in to see him, sure."

"Do you think it'll work?" Fiyero asked.

She stared at him exasperation. "Fiyero, it was your idea!"

"Well, what do I know! You're the smart one!" he defended himself.

Elphaba rolled her eyes again, and decided to go ask Nessa and Galinda their opinions. "By the way, the word is '_masquerade'," _she told Fiyero, patting his knee as she got up and left.

Boq groaned. "Elphaba, you're not supposed to tell him the answer!"

Elphaba just laughed.

It was three days after sending the final letter that there was a knock on the apartment door.

"I'll get it!" Galinda sang out, being closest to the door.

She opened it to find a man standing there in a palace uniform. "May I help you?" she asked politely.

"A letter for Miss Rozek from the Wizard of Oz," the man said, holding an emerald green and gold envelope out to her.

Galinda gasped and her eyes widened. "_Elphaba!" _she called out.

Sensing her friend's tone, Elphaba hurried out from the bedroom she and Galinda were sharing, where she had been reading.

"What is it?" she asked, as everyone else in the apartment entered the room.

"Miss Elphaba Rozek?" the man at the door asked.

"Yes," Elphaba replied.

"A letter for you from His Ozness."

The apartment was dead silent as Elphaba took the letter from him and opened it. She read it in silence before looking up at Melena.

"He wants to see me tomorrow. I'll be there," she added to the man at the door, who bowed and left.

"Oh this is so exciting!" Galinda exclaimed as Elphaba shut the door. "Elphie, what are you going to _wear?"_

Elphaba stared at her blankly. "_That's _the most important thing here? My wardrobe choices?"

"Yes," Galinda insisted. "Come on, Nessa and I will help you find something."

They eventually chose a dress for her to wear, and then got around to discussing the other details. Elphaba had decided that she wanted to go alone, and Melena had agreed to her daughter's request.

Elphaba hadn't thought she was nervous about it, but as she lay awake that night, listening to Galinda's even breathing, she was suddenly panicked. This was a huge step, and it completely freaked her out. Knowing that there was no way she'd be able to sleep now and wanting to try and distract herself, she lit the lamp next to her bed and picked up the book she had been reading earlier.

After reading the same paragraph three times and not once taking anything in, she sighed and gave up on that too.

"For the love of Oz," she muttered, swinging her legs out of bed and grabbing her robe.

She slipped out of the room, and was going to go sit in the living area, but instead found Boq asleep on the couch. Given that he had been there reading when she went to bed, Elphaba guessed he'd fallen asleep there. Not wanting to wake him, she crept down the hall and into the room where Fiyero was sleeping, snoring slightly.

"Yero?" she whispered, shaking his shoulder gently.

He opened his eyes blearily, looking confused and concerned to see her standing there.

"Fae? Are you okay?"

She nodded, then realised he couldn't really see her in the darkness. "I can't sleep. I think I'm nervous about tomorrow," she admitted, sitting gingerly on the edge of the bed.

Fiyero sat up, and lit the lamp beside the bed.

"Why?" he asked gently.

Elphaba shrugged, sighing deeply. "I don't know. I can't figure out if I'm nervous because he's my father or because he's the Wizard."

Fiyero could understand that. "Can I ask you something? What happens after you meet him? Do you want a relationship with him?"

Elphaba had been thinking about that and had an answer. "No. I mean, it's different with Melena, because I have Nessa. I honestly don't know if I'd want a relationship with her if I didn't have a sister."

"You would," Fiyero said knowingly.

Elphaba tried to roll her eyes, but she couldn't help but smile.

Fiyero chuckled, and took her hand, gently pulling her back on the bed so she was sitting against the pillows next to him.

"I just need to know who he is," Elphaba said quietly.

"I get that," Fiyero said.

Elphaba relaxed against him, feeling calm for the first time since getting the letter from the Wizard.

"And how are you doing with everything else?" he asked.

"Good," Elphaba replied honestly. "I guess… there was a part of me that always assumed I'd done something wrong and that was why my parents gave me up, or why I was never adopted… but I don't think that anymore."

Fiyero kissed the top of her head. "Good."

Supressing a yawn, she looked up at him tiredly. "Thank you. I should go, I think I can sleep now."

"Just stay here," Fiyero suggested.

Elphaba looked at him in surprise. "Really?"

"Why not?" he shrugged.

She leaned up and kissed him softly. "Ok," she agreed.

"One second," he said, getting out of bed.

Elphaba slipped under the covers and lay down, watching in bemusement as Fiyero got a blanket out of the closet, then returned to the bed. Instead of getting in beside her however, he lay on top of the covers and threw the blankets over himself.

"Er, Yero? What _are _you doing?" she asked.

He had the grace to look sheepish. "Well, I don't want your mother to think we're having sex," he explained.

Elphaba laughed. _"What?"_

"Well, she asked and I told her we weren't, and I don't want her to think I lied to her. I want her to like me."

Elphaba raised herself onto her elbows. "Melena asked you if we were having _sex_?" she asked, not sure how she felt about that.

Fiyero entwined her fingers in his. "You can't blame her, Fae. One minute she has a baby, and the next minute she has a twenty-one daughter who's dating… well, me."

Elphaba rolled onto her side to face him. "She _does_ like you. And why is it so important to you that she does?"

Fiyero looked at her earnestly. "Because she's your mother. And you're trying to have a relationship with her; and I don't want to make that harder by her not approving of me."

She leaned over and kissed him. "I love you."

He smiled and wrapped his arms around you. "I love you too, Fae. Get some sleep."

The next morning, Melena was the first one up. The door to Galinda and Elphaba's room was open, but when Melena peered inside, only the blonde girl was inside, fast asleep. Assuming Elphaba was already up, Melena checked the apartment but found only Boq still sleeping on the couch. It concerned her to not see her daughter anywhere. As she went to check the bathroom, she passed by the boys' room, and saw the door was ajar. Hesitantly, she pushed the door open and looked inside.

Elphaba and Fiyero were curled up together, both fully dressed, much to Melena's relief. Fiyero seemed to be lying on top of the covers under a blanket for some reason, and Elphaba was wrapped in his arms, her face peaceful.

As Melena hastily retreated to the kitchen to begin making breakfast, she felt tears coming to her eyes. She remembered how when she was little, Nessa would be unable to sleep or have a bad dream, and would only be comforted when she was brought into bed with her and Frex.

It was finally hitting Melena everything that she had missed with Elphaba, who was seeking comfort with her boyfriend and not her mother. She knew it must have been something like that, because she knew Elphaba had gone to bed in her own room the night before.

"Good morning," Elphaba said quietly a few minutes, entering the kitchen without Melena noticing and making her jump.

"Morning," Melena answered.

Elphaba noticed the tears in her mother's eyes, and was concerned. "Is everything okay?"

Melena forced a smile. "It's fine. I'm just realising… I missed so much with you. And I can't get that back. You're all grown up."

Elphaba softened, and she hugged her mother, initiating the hug for the first time.

"We still have time, Mom," she assured her.

Melena pulled away and looked at her in surprise. "You called me Mom."

Elphaba smiled slightly, she hadn't even been planning on it, it had just slipped out.

"Yeah, I did."

Melena beamed and hugged her again. "No matter what happens today… thank you."

Elphaba was in agreement. Whatever happened today, she had her mother and her sister. And she felt really glad about that.

**AN. Just a random note to say I _love _hearing from people all over the world both through this site and via twitter. It's really cool getting messages from people in other countries. So thanks to everyone who says "hi" :D**


	25. Chapter 25

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. Writing the Wizard was _really _hard, especially given that we know he's a fraud. So, I didn't really dwell on that fact, just really focused on the aspect of him being Elphaba's father, but I think I got it across a little Elphaba realising he's not what she thought he was. **

**Twenty-Five**

At exactly the designated time, Elphaba was outside the Wizard's Palace in the City centre. Her stomach was in knots, and she felt as though she might throw up.

Summoning all her courage, she took a deep breath and knocked on the palace door.

It was immediately opened by a guard in uniform. "Yes?"

"My name is Elphaba Rozek. I have an appointment with the Wizard," Elphaba announced, trying to sound more confident than she was.

He nodded. "This way," he said, allowing her to step inside.

She was escorted down several hallways, past several more guards who conferred briefly with her escort before being allowed to continue; until finally, she was shown into a large parlour and left alone.

It was a beautiful room, decorated in green and gold like everything else. Elphaba sat awkwardly on a loveseat, wondering what was going to happen.

What would her father be like? What would he look like? No one had ever seen the Wizard, as far as she knew.

Lost in thought, she jumped to her feet as the door opened. As she turned, a man entered. He was tall, with mostly grey hair although she could clearly see streaks of black remaining, and he was wearing a suit, and carrying a box under his arm. He looked surprised to see Elphaba as he stood there, which Elphaba guessed was due to her skin.

"Elphaba?" he asked uncertainly.

"Y-yes," Elphaba replied, wondering if she should curtsey.

He raised a hand as he stepped forward towards her. "Please, sit."

She did as requested, and he came and sat on the loveseat opposite hers.

As nervous as she was, sitting opposite her father, Elphaba couldn't help but realise that she was in the same room as the _Wizard of Oz- _her childhood hero, the man who she had dreamed of meeting and working for since she was a child. And who was now her father.

"It's really nice to meet you your Ozness," Elphaba began, but he cut her off.

"Please. It's Oscar."

"Oscar," Elphaba repeated, sounding out the unfamiliar name.

"So… Melena Thropp is your mother?"

"Yes, sir," she replied.

Oscar nodded slowly. "And you're twenty-one?"

Elphaba could see what he was doing, trying to verify that she actually _was _his daughter. She didn't call him out on it, she figured he had every right to do so.

"Yes. I was born April twelfth."

She could almost see him doing the calculations, and when he paled slightly after a few moments, Elphaba figured the dates matched up.

"Oh. I see."

Elphaba figured this was the best time to ensure there were no misunderstandings.

"I just want you to know, that I'm not here to ask for anything," she said quickly. "I don't want… _anything. _I just… wanted the chance to meet you."

Oscar seemed to be taking everything in- Elphaba recognised the facial expression well.

"Of course. It's only natural," he said faintly. "I am, after all… your father."

Then he looked at her, frowning slightly. "You don't have your mother's name."

Elphaba winced, she'd been hoping that wouldn't come up.

"No, I don't. My mother didn't raise me. I was raised in an orphanage, here in the Emerald City."

Oscar startled. "An orphanage? Here? Is your mother alive?"

"Yes," Elphaba said hastily. "But I… I was given up, at birth. By my… well, technically I suppose he was my step-father."

He looked horrified. "Why?"

She hesitated and lowered her gaze. "Uh, well…" she raised her green hands silently and Oscar understood.

"Oh. You were born like that?"

"Yes."

Oscar seemed confused by the idea, and he fell silent. "That could have been the elixir," he mused thoughtfully.

Elphaba blinked. "I'm sorry?" she asked, leaning forward.

He looked over at her and cleared his throat. "The elixir… it was what was in the bottle," he said, opening the box and lifting out the green bottle.

"I- that is, your mother and I, used to drink it. When we… knew one another."

Elphaba recalled the image from her dream of the toast in shadows, and then blanched at the idea she was having a picture of her own conception. She definitely did not need or want to know anything more about that.

"You look like your mother," Oscar noted.

Elphaba didn't know what to say. She hadn't really thought about that, although she had noted that she had inherited Melena's eyes, chin and bone structure. But she could also tell that she had Oscar's thin, fine nose and of course, the black hair.

But just being able to say that she _looked _like someone was something Elphaba had never been able to do before, and it took her by surprise.

Luckily, Oscar didn't wait for a response.

"So, Elphaba, tell me about yourself. Which orphanage were you at? Were you adopted?"

Elphaba cleared her throat uncomfortably. "No, I was at the Ernest Rusch's Children's Home until I was twenty. I go to Shiz on a partial scholarship, I'm doing a double degree in law and politics. And I also waitress at a restaurant off-campus."

He raised an eyebrow. "You're a waitress?"

"Well, I'm only on a partial scholarship," she repeated. "They cover my tuition, but I have to pay for my own books and things. Besides, I kind of like it," she admitted.

Oscar didn't look impressed. "What about housing?"

"I'm living on campus," Elphaba replied vaguely, not wanting admit her best friend's parents were paying for it.

"I'd be happy to pay-" he started, but she cut him off hastily.

"No! No, thank you," she corrected herself. "Like I said, I really don't want or need anything from you. I just wanted to meet you."

"So, you go to all this trouble to come see me, announce you're my daughter, and then leave? That's all? I'm never to see you again?"

Elphaba hesitated. Put that way, it did sound cold.

"I'd be happy to stay in written correspondence," she offered.

"And your mother? Are you going to stay in written correspondence with her?" Oscar asked pointedly.

Elphaba winced. "Well… the situation is slightly different with my mother. You see, I also have a sister. Well, half-sister," she corrected herself. "I go to Shiz with her and we were friends before we discoverated the truth. I'm still getting to know my mother, but I _do _expect to have a relationship with her," she admitted.

"As I said, I'm not expecting anything from you. I don't want special treatment from anyone, because of… because of your title," she said firmly.

"I can respect that," Oscar admitted.

Then he paused. "Would you like some tea?"

"Uh… sure. Thank you," Elphaba accepted.

Oscar called for tea. As they drank it, they spoke a little more, mostly about Shiz and Elphaba's studies. She felt awkward admitting she was studying law and politics in hope of working for the Wizard's administration, but he seemed impressed.

It wasn't exactly how Elphaba had always imagined meeting the Wizard. He didn't seem particularly impressive or powerful, and Elphaba felt slightly let down by that fact. The truth was, she saw, the Wizard was just... a man. He didn't seem to have any real power.

Before she left, he offered her the glass green bottle. "You've clearly held onto this for a long time. I'd like you to have it."

Elphaba hesitated and then took it from him. "Thank you."

When she entered the apartment, she found her mother and friends all sitting in the living room, waiting anxiously for her to return.

"Elphaba!" Nessa exclaimed when her sister entered.

Melena rose hastily, looking worried. "Well? How did it go?"

"It was fine," Elphaba reassured her. "We just had tea and talked, that's all."

"What happens next?" Galinda asked her friend gently.

Elphaba shook her head as she sat down. "Nothing. We go back to Shiz and live our lives. I've met him… that's all I really wanted to do."

Galinda looked disappointed. "That's it? Nothing else?"

Elphaba shrugged. "I have his nose?"

"I'm going to assume you don't mean that literally," Fiyero joked, trailing off under Elphaba's stare.

"Just trying to ease the tension," he said casually.

Elphaba sighed. "I don't know… I always imagined meeting him, when I was growing up. You know, the Great and Powerful Wizard of Oz. But he didn't seem to have any real power. He was just… Oscar."

A silence fell, no one sure what to say.

"Well, I'm hungry," Boq announced. "What's for lunch?"

Elphaba was excited to get back to Shiz and begin the semester, although she knew when people found out about her and Nessarose being sisters, it would be huge news.

"Why can't people find something to talk about that doesn't involve me?" she complained as they discussed it over dinner that night.

"What do you mean?" Melena asked, not following.

"Elphaba was a popular topic of discussion on campus last year," Boq informed her.

"Why?"

Elphaba sighed wearily. "Firstly because I was green; then because I was in the hospital; then because Galinda and I were friends; and then because I was dating Fiyero."

"Hey, I can think of at least two instances where people weren't talking about you," Fiyero chimed in, but Melena was focused on one thing.

"Why were you in the hospital?" she asked sharply.

Elphaba grimaced, she hadn't exactly mentioned that part to her mother was. "I was sick," she said vaguely.

Nessa knew their mother would freak if she knew the truth, so she smoothly lied. "She was just working too hard. That's all."

Melena wasn't sure if she bought that, but she let it go.

Two days after Elphaba's meeting with her father, Elphaba was in the bathroom brushing her teeth, when Fiyero called out to her.

"Er, Fae? You might want to see this!"

Elphaba groaned inwardly. Those words always filled her with a sense of dread.

"What now?" she grumbled.

Fiyero was in the living room, staring at the front page of the newspaper.

"I don't think you're going to like this," he told his girlfriend, reluctantly handing her the paper.

Elphaba took it, and gasped as she scanned the headline.

'_DAUGHTER OF OZ REUNITED WITH FATHER!'_

Below the headline was a large photo of Elphaba, which she recognised from her student ID at Shiz.

Frantically, she went on to read the article, which stated that she was the daughter of the Wizard, who had been estranged from her father- the Wizard, since her birth; and had finally reunited with her father and had met him two days prior.

"I- I don't understand," Elphaba stammered. "How- _how?"_

"I don't know, Fae," Fiyero said gently.

"What's going on?" Melena asked, entering the room, and Elphaba silently handed her the newspaper.

Elphaba began to pace as her mother read.

"Fae, calm down," Fiyero tried to soothe her, but she whirled around to face him in agitation.

"Calm _down_? Fiyero, do you know what this means? How are we going to explain what happened to everyone?"

"The truth?" Boq suggested, reading the article over Melena's shoulder.

Elphaba shook her head. "No. People would say awful things about Frex, and he's still Nessa's father, no matter what he did. She shouldn't have to go through that."

"What if I want to?" Nessa asked quietly, wheeling herself into the room.

"Honestly, Elphaba, what other choice do we have? Yes, my father did something horrendible, but he did a lot of good as Governor, and he was a good father to me. I can handle it if people say rude things."

"But I don't want them to say anything bad about you by association," Elphaba said to her sister gently.

Melena spoke up. "They wouldn't. Not if they knew about the milk flowers too."

"So, make Nessa a victim of Frex too so they don't turn on her? That sounds kind of cold," Galinda said in surprise from behind Nessa.

There was a knock on the door, and Fiyero opened it swiftly.

"Hello?" he greeted whoever was on the other side.

"Hello, I'm here to see Elphaba."

Elphaba recognised the voice and turned immediately. "Let him in, Yero."

Puzzled, Fiyero did so, and Oscar stepped into the room.

"Everyone, this is uh… Oscar. The Wizard of Oz," Elphaba introduced them.

Galinda and Nessa gasped.

"It's such an honour to meet you, Your Ozness," Galinda gushed curtsying. "I'm-"

"I know who you are, Miss Upland," Oscar cut her off, kindly.

"You _do_?" Galinda asked, wide-eyed.

He chuckled. "I'm the Wizard of Oz, of course I know!"

Elphaba wasn't that impressed, but Galinda seemed enchanted.

"Did you know about _this?" _Elphaba demanded, snatching the paper from Boq and holding it up for Oscar to see.

Oscar winced. "Ah, yes. I _did _hope I'd be here before you saw a paper."

"How did this happen?" she asked.

Oscar cleared his throat. "It seems there was a leak in the palace, and they told the paper. Of course, when I saw it, I knew I had to come."

"What for?" Elphaba asked suspiciously.

"To tell you how I intend to proceed from here."

"And just how is that?" Melena questioned, stepping forward to support her daughter.

Oscar stared at her for a long moment. "Melena… it's been a long time."

She gave no visible reaction. "What do you intend to do from here?" she repeated.

Oscar cleared his throat. "I am not going to deny it. I will publicly acknowledge you as my daughter."

Elphaba reeled slightly. "What? _No!_ I told you, I don't want anything from you. Can't you just dismiss it as a rumour or speculation?"

Oscar straightened stiffly. Fiyero didn't want to risk pain or injury by telling his girlfriend she had the same defiant stare as her father.

"I _could, _but why should I? It's true, isn't it? You are my daughter."

"By blood, perhaps," Elphaba argued.

Oscar set his jaw. "That was not by choice or design, as you well know."

Elphaba promptly turned on her heel and left the room. Fiyero made to follow her, but Melena stopped him.

"No. Let me."

She found Elphaba in her room, sitting on her bed miserably.

"Elphaba? What's wrong?"

Elphaba looked up at her and sighed. "You don't think I get enough attention as it is? I don't want to be treated differently because of him. I said from the very beginning I didn't want anything from him."

Melena stroked her hair lightly. "I know, sweetheart. But… you may not have a choice. The news is out there, even dismissing it as a rumour would not stop people from talking. And… Oscar seems determined to remain in your life. That doesn't mean you have to take anything from him."

"But if people know I'm the Wizard's daughter…"

"Yes, people will treat you differently," Melena admitted. "But you know who you're real friends are, Elphaba. And you don't have to change too much. You can still control your life."

"Can I?" Elphaba asked bitterly.

There was a gentle knock on the door, and the two women looked up to see Oscar there, looking awkward.

"Elphaba, I apologise. But may I please explain?"

Elphaba paused and then nodded briefly, not looking at him.

Oscar took a deep breath. "You and I are more alike than you may wish to think Elphaba. You see, I too, never had a family of my own. But that was my own choice- I was always working, always travelling. I always _wanted _a family, children, but the timing was never right. And now… here you are. I know that you're grown, and you don't _need _a father, and I respect you for not wanting anything. But would you deny me the opportunity to do what I can for my daughter? My own flesh and blood?"

Elphaba was hesitant.

"I'm not asking for much," Oscar said quickly. "But I would like to acknowledge you as my daughter. And to support your education."

"And in return?" Elphaba asked, seeing no point in pretending there would be no expected gesture on her part.

And Oscar didn't pretend. "Written correspondence, as you suggested the other day. And to see you, a few times a year."

Elphaba looked over at Melena, who looked back at her.

"This is your decision. I'll support you regardless," she said simply.

Elphaba sighed, then turned back to Oscar. "Those terms seem acceptable," she agreed quietly.

Oscar smiled. "Wonderful. I'm going to release a statement this afternoon. I'll be sure to include your request for privacy, shall I?"

Elphaba nodded. "Please."

"Another thing I was hoping to talk to you about was how much detail you wanted to give to explain our estrangement?"

Elphaba was too weary to go through all that, Melena could see, so she stepped in.

"I think perhaps you and I should discuss that privately. Elphaba and I have already spoken briefly about it, and I think she could use some space right now."

Oscar nodded. "Of course."

Melena and Oscar left the room, and Elphaba lay back on her bed tiredly. This was it, there was no going back.

Her whole life was about to change.

**AN. I debated whether I'd go into the whole "Defying Gravity" thing, but ultimately decided not to. **

**Only 2 more chapters left! **


	26. Chapter 26

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. 2nd last chapter! And to RecycledBookworm- that line was actually one of those times I didn't pick the reference until _after _I wrote it, haha. **

**And as many of you noted in your reivews, the entire situation is hugely complicated. It was _so _hard to write, so I feel I should take the time to say "Thank You" to Kelly, who had to deal with many random phone calls and messages with questions like "what would Melena's job be?" and "Would Elphaba want a relationship with Oscar?" and "What if Elphaba..." oh, wait- that's for another story ;) **

**Twenty-Six**

By the time they started back at Shiz, _everyone _knew that their resident green girl, was the daughter of the Wizard of Oz.

And of course the news had consequences, some better than others.

As Elphaba had predicted, Elphaba suddenly had everyone on campus being nice to her, trying to be her friend. But as Melena had said, she knew who her real friends were and Elphaba wasn't swayed by the false compliments and desires of everyone else.

Elphaba had chosen to continue working at _Identity_, even though she no longer had the need. And Idonea and Alun were thrillified, because once people heard that the Wizard's daughter worked there, their business tripled.

One of the biggest consequences however, was Fiyero's parents. Fiyero received their letter in the first week of semester, which contained glowing praise of Elphaba and an open invitation for her to visit the Vinkus any time she wished. His father even praised the match, which made Fiyero promptly crumple the letter into a ball and throw it into Suicide Canal.

He and Elphaba were sitting by the water, her sitting between his legs and leaning against him.

"So they suddenly like me now?" Elphaba asked.

Fiyero sighed. "Of course they do. You're the daughter of the Wizard of Oz."

"The green, illegitimate daughter," she retorted and Fiyero kissed her neck with a smile.

"But his daughter none the less."

Elphaba was happy to be back at school, although she had found it harder than expected to say goodbye to Melena.

But her mother had given her the best parting words Elphaba could have wished for. After hugging her tightly, and promising to write and reminding her that they would see one another at Lurlinemas, Melena had said one thing.

"Do you remember the lullaby?"

Elphaba had chuckled faintly. "I think it's safe to say it's ingrained in my mind forever."

Melena smiled. "Then remember these lines. _'Wherever you fly, this isn't goodbye.' _This is just… see you later."

The words, and the whole song was a huge comfort to Elphaba throughout the beginning of the semester. But Fiyero, Galinda, Nessa and Boq had all noticed that Elphaba seemed to have some kind of inner peace, as she came to terms with everything that had happened over the summer- the good, the bad and the indifferent.

And then in October, she received a mysterious letter from Oscar, inviting her, Nessa, Fiyero, Galinda and Boq to the Emerald City for a weekend, which ruined the peace slightly.

"What could he want?" Elphaba frowned at the letter, hoping their might be a clue within the letter, but there wasn't.

Galinda shrugged. "It could be anything. Are we going?" she asked hopefully.

"I just don't understand why he'd invite _all _of us," Elphaba said, not answering the question.

"Elphie, come _on! _Let it go! He's just trying to do something nice. He knows we're all friends, and probably knows you'd be a lot more comfortable with us there."

"I don't know…" Elphaba said uncertainly.

"_Elphie,_" Galinda said warningly.

Elphaba sighed and rolled her eyes. "Ok! Ok, we can go."

Galinda squealed and hugged her. "Yay! This is perfect timing, the winter fashions are just hitting the stores now."

"Oh, well I'm glad you've got your priorities straight," Elphaba said sarcastically.

The others all agreed that the trip was a good idea, although Fiyero and Nessa agreed with Elphaba that it sounded like there was more to the trip that the invitation let on.

"But you won't know until you go," Nessa pointed out.

They had been invited to the palace for lunch on Saturday, and Galinda and Nessa were particularly stressed over what to wear. Galinda changed outfits three times, and was talking about changing a fourth time when Elphaba told her they had to leave.

"Besides, why are you so nervous? You've already met him," she pointed out, running a brush through her hair, and pinning it back with a thin silver headband.

"Yes, but I've never been to the Palace," Galinda replied.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Let's just go, please?"

When they arrived, Elphaba and Nessa were pleasantly surprised to see their mother was there.

"Do you know what's going on?" Elphaba asked her after greeting her.

Melena shook her head. "No, I'm just as in the dark as you are."

When Oscar finally arrived, he didn't keep them waiting to explain his intentions.

"I wanted to ask you, Elphaba, how you felt about a debutante ball?" he asked her as they ate.

Elphaba stared at him blankly. "For who?"

He chuckled. "For you, of course."

"_Why?"_

Oscar seemed surprised. "When young ladies of a certain social status reach a certain point, they have a debutante ball to show society that they are… well, in society."

"And I need one why?" Elphaba asked, still not understanding.

"Well, as my daughter, you are now at a certain level of social standing."

"But aren't I too old to be a debutante?"

"Not necessarily," Oscar shook his head. "It's true that most debutantes are between sixteen and eighteen, but there's no age limit."

Elphaba hesitated. "Look… I appreciate the offer, but it's not really my thing," she refused politely.

To her surprise, Melena spoke up. "Don't be so hasty, Elphaba. You may not think it's your thing, but it could be a lot of fun. I was a debutante, and it was a great night."

"My parents met at their debutante ball," Galinda chimed in. "Popsicle escorted Momsie and then they courted for a year before marrying. And they're not the only ones who have those types of stories."

"That's true," Melena nodded.

The whole idea was ludicrous to Elphaba, not least because her knowledge of debutante balls was limited to knowing that the girls wore white ball gowns- which would look ridiculous with her green skin.

"I still don't think it's my thing," Elphaba insisted.

Oscar sighed. "Elphaba, as my daughter, it's kind of expected. I hadn't thought of the idea either, until it was brought to my attention by several members of my administration and several high dignitaries. Fiyero's parents included."

Fiyero was startled. "Wait- what?"

Oscar nodded. "Your parents wrote to me and asked if I was planning to debut you. And the idea made sense."

"_Debut_ me? I'm not a, a…" Elphaba was so incensed, she couldn't even think of a proper analogy.

"Elphaba, the fact of the matter is, it is expected. And you are at the age where it would not be uncommon or improper for you to be getting married," Oscar stated simply.

Elphaba could only gape at him.

"I think it sounds like fun," Nessarose said quietly.

"I would love to see it," Melena admitted.

Elphaba looked between Oscar, Melena and her sister and then sighed wearily.

"When would this ball be?" she asked dully.

Oscar beamed. "It would be in late November. And once you've finished eating, I have a surprise for you."

When they'd all finished, Oscar escorted them to the parlour where he and Elphaba had first met.

"In the hope that you would agree to the ball, I had the liberty of asking a few local designers to bring their collections here for you to browse through, perhaps to find a dress," he explained to Elphaba.

She looked wary, but Melena and Nessa looked intrigued, and Galinda looked ready to die of excitement.

"Come on, Elphie. It can't hurt to look," Galinda needled her best friend.

"And if you find one now, you won't have to look again," Nessa added, knowing her sister.

As she'd predicted, Elphaba caved. "Sure, let's get this over with," she agreed.

The girls all left to an adjacent room where the dresses and designers were waiting, leaving Oscar with Fiyero and Boq. Realising he was in a room with Elphaba's boyfriend and father, Boq made a hasty escape.

"Sorry, where's the bathroom?" he asked Oscar.

"Make two lefts and then it's the third door on the right," Oscar replied and Boq quickly left.

"Traitor," Fiyero muttered under his breath, who had come to the same realisation Boq had.

There was an awkward silence, and then Oscar turned to Fiyero.

"So, you and Elphaba have been dating for how long now?"

"Almost nine months," Fiyero answered. Then he decided to ask a question of his own, one he'd had earlier.

"Over lunch, you mentioned marriage to Elphaba."

"Yes," Oscar replied. "It's not too early to be thinking about it."

Fiyero almost laughed. "Excuse my bluntness, Your Ozness, but it's really obvious that you don't know Elphaba too well yet."

"And why is that?"

"Elphaba's been alone her whole life until now," Fiyero explained. "She makes her own decisions and is fiercely independent. You've been in her life for a few weeks, and you think she's going to let you choose a _husband_ for her? That's not going to happen."

Oscar didn't seem offended but he didn't give Fiyero's words much thought. "I'm not choosing a husband for her, I'm simply making sure to invite eligible young men who could be a suitable husband for her. If _she_ so chooses."

Fiyero bristled. "You seem to be forgetting that Elphaba isn't '_eligible'_," he retorted tightly.

Oscar raised an eyebrow. "Are _you _intending to marry Elphaba?"

Fiyero had the same response he always did, 'maybe, one day.' But before he could say anything, they heard footsteps and a rustling of fabric approaching.

"Yero, my mother and Galinda are _insisting _on this dress, and Nessa's being no help at all. Can you _please _tell them it looks ridiculous?"

Fiyero looked over nonchalantly and his jaw dropped, the colour actually draining from his face. Elphaba was wearing a white ball gown, which was strapless with a full skirt made of layers and layers of tulle. There was a band of crystals around her waist, and the skirt floated to the floor. With her hair loose and draping over her shoulders, only pushed back by the silver headband; she had never looked more beautiful to Fiyero, even as she stood there looking frustrated and with her hands on her hips.

"It- it doesn't look ridiculous," he managed to croak out.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "You're no help either," she complained and left the room.

Fiyero turned immediately back to Oscar.

"Yes."

Oscar raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"

"Yes. I intend to marry Elphaba," Fiyero said firmly.

It had hit Fiyero like a ton of bricks when he saw her, he couldn't say why; but he knew it was true.

Oscar only looked at him, not saying anything.

"Excuse me," Fiyero said, standing up and leaving the room.

He went out the door Elphaba had disappeared through, and found her in front of a mirror, still in the dress and frowning critically at her reflection.

Fiyero came up behind her, gently turned her around and then kissed her deeply, taking her by surprise.

"You look incredible," he murmured, pulling away slightly.

"I _look _like a marshmallow," she grumbled. "I guess with the green it's a mouldy marshmallow, but-"

Fiyero shook his head and kissed her again. "You are amazing and sexy, and the most beautiful girl I've ever seen in my entire life," he told her, pulling away once more.

Elphaba blushed, either at his words or the way he was looking at her, she didn't know.

"I'm going to shut up now," she whispered.

Fiyero grinned. "Good idea."

And then he drew her back to him. Elphaba's last clear thought was that now she had no hope of getting out of wearing this dress to the ball. But if this was the reaction she got, she could bear with it for one night.

**AN. There's a picture of Elphaba's debutante dress on my blog! **


	27. Chapter 27

**DISCLAIMER: I have absolutely no right or claim to _Wicked, _except as a fan.**

**AN. Um, I may have also had a _Big Bang Theory _marathon whilst writing this.**

**And this chapter is dedicated to Wickedozgirl, who got me a signed copy of Delta Goodrem's new single! Not only is this so exciting, but after I had a really crappy afternoon, this made my night. So, thanks Liana!**

**Twenty-Seven**

Oscar, it seemed, had invited almost everyone at Shiz and their families to the debutante ball, and everyone was excited- even if it was the ball for the green girl, it was still going to be held at the Wizard's palace.

Fiyero knew without having to ask that he'd be Elphaba's escort to her debutante ball, but he'd still decided he wanted to be given the chance to actually ask her and for her to say yes.

And he knew exactly how he wanted to do it.

He turned up at _Identity _one day when Elphaba was working, Cailean and Fyonn in tow.

"Table for three, please, Miss," he greeted her.

Elphaba smiled and grabbed three menus. "You guys remember I can't give you discount, right?"

"Damn," Fyonn sighed as she led them to a table.

"It was worth a try, right?" Cailean asked.

Elphaba laughed. "Sure. Do you want to start with drinks or order now?"

"I think we'll start with drinks, please Lady Fae," Fyonn replied.

"Do you know how sad I am that I can no longer call you Little Orphan Elphie?" Cailean pouted.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "I can't tell you how much I'm going to miss that particular nickname," she said sarcastically. "So, what do you want to drink?"

"Chocolate milkshake, please, Fae," Fiyero answered.

Elphaba stared at him. "You're joking, right?"

"Why would I joke about chocolate milkshakes?" Fiyero asked innocently.

"Ok, but I didn't realise I was dating a six year old," Elphaba teased as she dutifully wrote it down.

"Boys, what about you?"

Fyonn puffed out his chest. "I'm going to order a _real _drink- can I have a virgin Cuba libre, please?"

Elphaba raised an eyebrow. "Rum and coke without the rum?"

"Yes, and could you make it diet, please? I'm trying to watch my figure," he replied.

She turned to Cailean warily. "Cailean?"

"I'll have a Shirley temple with a crazy straw please," he grinned.

"Oh, can I have a crazy straw with my milkshake, please?" Fiyero jumped in.

"Me too!" Fyonn added.

Elphaba stared at them in exasperation. "Why do I bother?" she asked seemingly no one as she walked away.

"Your boyfriend and his friends are weird," Dev said solemnly to Elphaba as she handed him the drink orders.

She rolled her eyes. "Tell me about it."

"Here you go, Cabbage," he said, placing the drinks on the tray.

"Thanks, Dev," Elphaba replied, not even reacting to the nickname. "You know, soon you're going to run out of green things to call me."

Dev grinned and shrugged. "Then I'll pick one and stick with it."

"Because Oz forbid you use my name," she said dryly and left before he could reply.

When she got back to the table, she found the three boys laughingly arguing over something.

"What's going on?" she asked, as she delivered the drinks.

Fyonn was holding a newspaper as he explained. "We're dating whether there's any truth to horoscopes. Cailean says no, Fiyero and I say yes."

"I don't think they're right _all _the time, but I think they can be," Fiyero argued. "Fae had one come true."

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "First of all, that was rigged. Secondly, no it didn't."

Fiyero looked outraged. "I'm sorry, did you or did you not meet a charming and persistent young man?" he asked her.

Elphaba was smirking teasingly as she answered. "Yes, but the second half said if I gave you food you'd go away. And you didn't."

Fiyero snatched the paper from Fyonn and handed it to her.

"Fine, I'll prove you wrong. Read your horoscope," he challenged.

Elphaba rolled her eyes, but gave in. "Today your loved one will ask you a question. Say yes."

She blinked, her first thought being that it was very vague- even for a horoscope. She lifted her gaze from the paper to look quizzically at Fiyero.

To her surprise, Fiyero got up from his chair, and knelt down before Elphaba on one knee. She paled and took a small involuntary step backwards, and a sudden hush fell over the restaurant.

"Fiyero, what's going on?" she asked nervously.

Fiyero took her hand and cleared his throat. "Elphaba Rozek, would you do me the honour of allowing me to escort you to your debutante ball?"

Elphaba could feel all eyes on her and she blushed furiously, just wanting to have the ground swallow her whole.

"Y-yes," she finally answered, with a small nod.

Fiyero beamed, rising to his feet and kissing her lightly as the other customers applauded.

Elphaba buried her head in his shoulder, completely mortified.

"I can believe that just happened," she moaned. Then she pulled back at looked at the newspaper in her hand.

"How did you do this?" she demanded.

There was no question in her mind that Fiyero was involved and this was no coincidence.

He shrugged casually. "I went to the newspaper office and asked to speak with whoever did the horoscopes. It turns out she thinks they're a load of crap, so when I told her the story of how we met and asked her to print an oddly specific Aries horoscope, she agreed."

Elphaba shook her head slightly in amazement and kissed him again.

"Thank you. But really, who else would escort me?" she asked pointedly.

Cailean chimed in. "Um, excuse me, Miss? We'd like to order now if you can stop with the lovey-dovey stuff."

Elphaba rolled her eyes and got back to work.

Galinda and Nessa were absolutely furious when they heard the story, and Galinda punched Fiyero in the arm.

"We were doing _nothing_, is it too hard to merit us a lunch invitation when you're planning to do something like that?" she demanded.

Fiyero looked faintly alarmed. "Ok! I'm sorry! I promise, next time I'll invite you."

"Oh, there will be no next time," Elphaba said flatly.

Fiyero pouted. "Why not?"

"Because it was the most embarrassing moment of my life," she answered.

Fiyero sniffed. "I was trying to be romantic."

"Well, be romantic not in a room filled with people," she retorted.

Fiyero sighed. "Fine."

Elphaba didn't really have to organise too much for the ball, it was mostly being taken care of by Oscar and the palace staff.

One thing she and Fiyero did have to do, however, was dancing lessons. They would be required to waltz at the ball, and although Fiyero knew a little from growing up as a prince; Elphaba knew nothing.

The Arts teacher at Shiz, Madame Leidy had agreed to give the pair a few lessons on the weekends around Elphaba's work shifts. Their first lesson was arranged for one Saturday morning, three weeks before the ball.

Elphaba was surprised when she and Fiyero entered the classroom to find Nessa, Boq, Galinda, Fyonn and Cailean there too.

"What are you all doing here?" she demanded.

"Watching," Boq grinned.

"Eating popcorn," Cailean added.

"Great," Fiyero muttered.

Elphaba scowled at him. "You can't complain, at least you know what you're doing."

Madame Leidy entered the room just then, ready to begin.

"Oh, excellent, you're both here. Are you ready to start?"

Elphaba sighed. "Sure, let's get this over with," she agreed.

Madame Leidy spent the first twenty minutes with them lecturing them all on the proper waltz posture and etiquette. Elphaba felt slightly better when she made Galinda and Cailean demonstrate both the good and then bad; and then she turned to Elphaba and Fiyero.

"Alright you two, come here," she ordered and they dutifully did so.

"Now, you stand here, and Mister Tiggular, you're here," she positioned them appropriately. "Very good. Now, Mister Tiggular, you place your right hand… _here,_" she said, moving Fiyero's hand to just under Elphaba's shoulder blade, which effectively drew them closer together.

"I forgot the perks of waltzing," Fiyero said brightly and Elphaba glared at him.

"Watch it," she warned him.

Madame Leidy ignored them. "Alright. So, keep your arm straight… like this. Miss Elphaba, place your hand on Fiyero's shoulder… that's right. And you hold hands like… very good."

She then took them through the basic foot movements, and had them practice moving in a small circle, with no music playing.

"Not bad. Are you ready to try it with music now?" she asked, pleased with their progress.

Elphaba nodded. "Sure."

Madame Leidy went over to the record player in the corner of the room to start the music.

"Is it easier with the music?" Elphaba asked Fiyero hopefully.

He thought about it and shook his head. "Not really."

"Damn," she sighed and he chuckled.

"Sorry, Fae."

They practised with the music a few times, and when Madame Leidy dismissed them for now, Fiyero turned to his girlfriend.

"You did really well," he praised her. "You've picked it up fast. We'll have no trouble at the ball."

Elphaba didn't look convinced. "Uh, Yero? Remember my dress?"

Fiyero's eyes lit up at the memory of said dress. That made Elphaba blush, but she stick to her point.

"Hey!" she snapped her fingers in front of his face to gain back his attention.

"What? Yes, I remember the dress," Fiyero replied innocently.

"So you remember the big, puffy skirt I was talked into?"

Fiyero grimaced as he understood Elphaba's point now. "Oh, right. That might be a bit harder," he agreed.

"You'll be fine, Elphie," Galinda reassured her, joining them.

Elphaba severely doubted that, but didn't have the time to argue.

"I have to get to work," she sighed.

Fiyero kissed her quickly. "Ok. I'll pick you up after?"

She smiled. "Sounds good. Bye guys," she waved to the others and hurried from the room.

"So, what's Elphaba's dress like?" Fyonn asked Fiyero interestedly, who hadn't missed his friend's facial expression earlier.

Fiyero shoved him good-naturedly. "None of your business."

It was a week and a half before the ball that Fiyero got some news that he knew would make Elphaba more nervous than she already was. He knew she was mostly doing this for Melena and Nessa, but she wasn't really looking forward to it.

"But you should have seen Melena when we were looking at dresses," she'd told him.

It made sense to Fiyero. "This is the first thing she's gotten to do with you as mother and daughter, really," he nodded.

So, Elphaba was resolved to suck it up and get through the night.

The news he had would not help with this.

"My parents are coming," he told her, sitting down next to her in the cafeteria.

Elphaba was startled. "What? Why?"

Fiyero shrugged. "Oscar invited them. So, they're coming."

Elphaba sighed wearily. "Great. Just what I need."

"It'll be fine, Fae," he tried to reassure her.

She looked at him incredulously. "Fine? Fiyero they _hated _me- hated the very idea of me, until they found out who my father is!"

"And once they meet you, they'll love you for you," he retorted.

Elphaba scoffed sceptically, and Fiyero leaned over and kissed her tenderly. "They will, I promise."

"You can't promise that Yero," Elphaba said gently.

"I can," Fiyero insisted. "Because they'll talk to you, and find out how brilliant, funny, loving and amazing you are, and they won't have a choice but to love you."

Elphaba's face softened into a smile and she leaned forward and kissed him.

"For the love of Oz, will you two get a room?" Boq demanded playfully, as he and Nessa arrived.

Elphaba blushed, but Fiyero only looked annoyed at the interruption.

"Great timing," he greeted him.

Boq shrugged. "I try."

"What's going on?" Nessa asked her sister.

"Fiyero's parents are coming to the ball," she replied.

Boq and Nessa both cringed, knowing the circumstances surrounding Fiyero's parents.

"Oh, this will be interesting," Boq commented.

Elphaba sighed. "I just want this to be over already."

Finally, at long last, the weekend of the ball arrived. As Fiyero's parents would be staying in the apartment this time, Oscar had invited the group and Melena to be guests for the weekend in the palace.

Melena whisked Elphaba, Nessa and Galinda away early on Saturday morning for a long day of pampering. Elphaba didn't really see the point, but patiently allowed herself to be pampered to within an inch of her life.

Galinda, of course, was in her element and seemed to be enjoying this more than anyone.

"What's next?" she asked excitedly as they left the spa.

"We'll go and get our hair and makeup done," Melena answered. "Elphaba, have you thought about how you want your hair tonight?"

"Down," Elphaba replied immediately.

Galinda and Nessa exchanged smirks.

"Fiyero likes it down," Nessa explained to her mother, who smiled.

"Of course he does."

Elphaba blushed, and Melena laughed gently. "Alright, down it is. Let's go or we'll be late."

At the hair salon, Elphaba sat there as her hair was washed, dried, curled and pulled back, secured with a beautiful hair clip.

Galinda was having her blonde curls pinned up elegantly, whilst Nessa had decided on a simple French braid.

"So, does Fiyero have any say on your makeup?" Melena asked Elphaba teasingly.

Elphaba blushed, but answered nonetheless. "No. But I do- I don't wear much."

"I know how!" Galinda offered, coming forward.

Even Elphaba had to admit that with her hair and makeup done, she was getting kind of excited for the night- if only to see Fiyero's reaction when he saw her. But once Melena and Galinda had helped her into the beautiful white dress and she'd completed the outfit with the white elbow-length gloves, Elphaba felt beautiful.

Melena looked slightly teary when she saw her daughter. "I'm so glad I was able to do this with you," she said softly, when they were alone so Nessa and Galinda could get themselves ready. "Thank you, Elphaba, I know you didn't really want to do this."

Elphaba smiled faintly. "It wasn't all bad," she admitted reluctantly and Melena chuckled.

There was a gentle knock on the door.

"Come in," Melena called.

The door opened and Fiyero entered, looking very handsome in a suit- looking like the prince Elphaba sometimes forgot he was.

As Elphaba turned to face him and he took her appearance in, he froze and could only gape at her.

Melena smiled knowingly and decided to give them a moment. "I should go make sure Nessa's okay," she excused herself.

Her exit seemed to spur movement back into Fiyero.

"What are the symptoms of a stroke?" he asked hoarsely, moving forward.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "You're not having a stroke."

"No?" Fiyero asked challengingly, reaching her and slipping his arms around her waist. "Because I'm pretty sure my heart stopped beating for a second just now."

"That's not a stroke, that would be-"

Fiyero cut her off with a kiss. "Elphaba, shut up. You look amazing, can we not argue about the technicalities?"

Elphaba smiled. "You don't look too bad yourself. You look like a prince," she said softly, lifting her hand to his face and stroking his cheek with her thumb.

Fiyero chuckled and kissed the palm of her hand through her glove. "I am a prince."

"Yes, but you don't act like one most of the time," she explained, her gaze soft and eyes shining.

Fiyero kissed her again slowly. "Well, if acting like a prince gets you to look at me like this, I'm going to do it a lot more," he murmured.

Elphaba giggled softly, moving closer to him. "Good."

They jumped apart as the door opened and Oscar entered.

"Oh," he said in surprise, clearly not expecting to see Fiyero there. "You're both here. Er… good. We're about to start soon, everyone's just about ready. Fiyero, you'd best get to the ballroom. You know what you have to do?"

Fiyero nodded. "Yes, sir."

When they were announced, Oscar would lead Elphaba into the room and then turn her over to Fiyero for the first dance.

Fiyero gave Elphaba one final kiss and left the room, heading for the ballroom.

"Fiyero, wait up!"

He turned to see Boq, Nessa and Galinda approaching. Galinda was dressed in pink, of course; whilst Nessa was wearing pale blue.

"Hey, you girls look great," Fiyero complimented them. "You too, Boq," he smirked.

Boq rolled his eyes. "Thanks."

Galinda frowned. "Are you okay, Fiyero? You look awfully flushed."

It was Boq's turn to smirk. "He just left Elphaba. I'm guessing he's short of oxygen."

Fiyero glared at him. "Shut up. Come on, they're starting soon."

As Elphaba and Oscar headed slowly towards the ballroom, hindered by Elphaba's uncertain steps with her long dress and heels; Elphaba thought Oscar seemed unsure of what to say, and she had nothing to say to him.

"I appreciate your doing this, Elphaba," he said finally, as they stood outside the ballroom.

"I'm doing it for my mother," she replied.

"I know," Oscar said quickly. "But nevertheless, I still appreciate it. And… you look… lovely."

Elphaba looked at him. "Thank you," she answered.

Then they heard the announcement from the other side of the doors.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, may I present, Miss Elphaba Rozek, daughter of Melena Thropp and our Wizard."

Elphaba cringed slightly, but took a deep breath as she and Oscar stepped into the room. He guided her to the dance floor, where Fiyero was waiting. She could feel all eyes on her, but she fully relaxed for the first time when Fiyero took her hand and led her to the centre of the dance floor.

"Are you ready?" he muttered to her.

"Sure," Elphaba muttered back. "Are we betting on whether what happens first- me stepping on your toes or you stepping on my dress?"

Fiyero chuckled. "What are the stakes?"

"I hadn't thought that far ahead," Elphaba replied.

The music started and Fiyero's hand came around to her back and she placed her other hand on his shoulder. Elphaba could feel all eyes on her and she was still tense as she and Fiyero began to dance.

"Relax, Fae," he murmured in her ear. "You're doing fine."

Elphaba let out a breath and forced herself to relax slightly. And soon, other people began moving onto the floor with them, including- much to Elphaba and Fiyero's amusement, Galinda and Boq.

"I wonder how long it took him to ask her to dance," Fiyero chuckled, and Elphaba laughed.

"Poor Boq. He looks like he's about to faint."

"Do you think he's breathing?" Fiyero asked, not entirely joking.

They got through the dance smoothly, with no missteps or errors, much to Elphaba's enormous relief.

"Do you want to get the other horrendible part of the evening over with?" Fiyero asked her quietly as they escaped the dance floor.

"Which would that be?" Elphaba asked.

"Meeting my parents."

She grimaced briefly, then sighed. "I guess it's better to start off with a bad night and get better, rather than ruin a good night with something bad."

"That's the spirit," Fiyero encouraged.

He found his parents across the room and piloted Elphaba in that direction.

"Mom, Dad?"

Lada and Bohdan turned and Elphaba tightened her grip on Fiyero's hand.

"I'd like you to meet Elphaba. Elphaba, these are my parents, Lada and Bohdan," Fiyero introduced and Elphaba curtseyed respectfully.

"It's nice to meet you," she said politely.

Bohdan nodded. "You as well, Elphaba. We've heard much about you."

"That's a lovely dress you're wearing," Lada complimented her.

"Thank you," Elphaba replied awkwardly.

Just then, Cailean clapped Fiyero on the shoulder from behind. "Fiyero, can I borrow you for a sec? Hey, Elphaba, you look gorgeous. I'll bring him back in a clock-tick," he promised her and whisked Fiyero away, leaving her with his parents.

Bohdan initiated a conversation with her, and the three of them chatted politely for a few minutes, before Elphaba excused herself.

When Fiyero returned, he found no visible sign of Elphaba.

"Well?" he asked hopefully.

His parents exchanged a look. "She seems to be a very nice, intelligent girl," Lada finally answered, seemingly relucatant to admit it.

Bohdan agreed. "She is. And it's a very smart match- even if we're not talking about the possibility of marriage," he said, recalling his son's words at Lurlinemas.

Fiyero finally spied Elphaba in the room and smiled at his parents. "We will be one day, Dad. I'll see you later, have a good night."

He disappeared, leaving his shocked parents behind and made his way through the room to Elphaba, who was out on the balcony.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked, taking off his suit coat and draping it over her shoulders, as it was cold outside.

Elphaba nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. Just needed some air. There's so many people in there, and I only care about like half a dozen of them."

"Welcome to my life," Fiyero replied and she sighed tiredly.

It was only then Fiyero had a thought that if she was unhappy with this life and the attention, perhaps she wouldn't want to marry him and have to deal with this permanently as the Vinkun Princess.

"Hey, Fae?" he asked, wrapping his arms loosely around her waist from behind. "Do you think we have a future?"

Elphaba said nothing for a moment, wondering if he was joking or being serious.

"I don't know, I'd have to read my horoscope," she teased lightly and Fiyero laughed quietly, kissing her neck softly.

Then she turned within the circle of his arms to face him. "I think so… I hope so," she admitted faintly.

Fiyero was both relieved and thrilled by her answer and lowered his head to hers.

"I think we do too," he whispered, kissing her softly. "A very long, happy future."

Elphaba closed her eyes with a soft smile. "Good."

Fiyero kissed her once more and pulled away. "Do you want to get out of here?" he asked.

Elphaba's eyes lit up at the idea, but she hesitated. "What about all those people?"

"Trust me, the only people who'll notice we're gone are the half a dozen you care about, and you'll be with one of them," he pointed out.

"How do you know you're one of them?" she teased and laughed at his facial expression.

"Come on. We'll come back in a bit," he assured her and Elphaba gave in.

"Ok," she agreed.

That night found Galinda and Nessa entering Elphaba's room after the party had finished, where Elphaba had only just come in herself.

"Did you have fun tonight, Elphie?" Galinda asked.

Elphaba paused thoughtfully as she began to wipe the makeup off her face. "It wasn't _all_ bad. I think one is definitely enough, though. What about you girls?"

They discussed the party for a few more minutes, and then Nessa asked her sister a question.

"So, does it feel how you thought it would? Knowing the truth about who you are?"

Elphaba considered it carefully. "In some ways I feel I know myself better. It's kind of nice to be able to look in the mirror and know I have my mother's eyes, or my father's nose-"

"Or Fiyero's hickey on your neck," Galinda noted mischievously.

Elphaba blushed and her hand flew to her neck. "Shut up."

Galinda giggled. "Did you think we didn't notice that you and Fiyero disappeared for forty-five minutes?" she asked.

"Nothing happened, we just talked," Elphaba replied.

Both girls stared at her pointedly, so she amended. "Ok, so we didn't _just _talk. But still, nothing happened."

"What did you talk about?" Nessa questioned.

Elphaba shrugged lightly. "Everything, nothing. Our future."

"I think that future involves another white dress," Galinda hissed to Nessa in a stage whisper, who laughed.

Elphaba rolled her eyes. "Maybe," she confessed.

When she was finally alone, Elphaba looked at her reflection in the white ball dress, thinking about Galinda's words.

Yes, she and Fiyero had discussed- among other things, the idea of them getting married… one day. It was another thing Elphaba had never really thought of much before, but she couldn't deny the image of her and Fiyero getting married, with her sister and her mother by her side, was a beautiful one.

Whether or not Oscar was in that picture too, Elphaba wasn't sure yet. She didn't know what the rest of her life held for her past graduation. But she was excited to find out.

**The End**

**AN. And we're at the end! Thank you so much to everyone who read and reviewed this story- it was well worth the many months this story spent lying in my "stories in progress" folder!**

**As I mentioned, the next Wicked story I'll be posting is the alternate ending to MAY I NOT LOSE YOU. It diverts from the original fic at chapter 7. My question for you is, would you like me to post the first original 6 chapters before it diverts, or are you guys good without it and to start from the new stuff? Let me know!**

**The next fic should be up in 2 or so weeks. I have a sequel to my NCIS fic I'm posting next, but it's only short, so it shouldn't be long!**


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